Secrets are for the Silent
by twistedsteps301
Summary: Becoming accustomed to the darkness was easier said than done. It held secrets Aaliyah would never have believed in her wildest dreams. It wasn't exactly a fresh start but it was definitely new. "Sometimes the shadows expose more than the light is capable of."-Aaliyah. "...Maybe, but it can illuminate a new world to those who live in the shadows,"-Wally, "those like you."
1. Chapter 1

**So another attempt at a Young Justice Fanfic since my other one kind of seemed a bust. A guest reviewer pointed out that my OC was on the "Mary Sue" side and it made me rethink my whole approach. I don't want my character to be the definition of perfect, I want my character to have flaws, to be different and fumble. I will keep the same OC with a slight name change from the original but it won't start out like last time, I want time for my character to develop into someone.**

 **On another note, I am not sure about character pairings just yet. As the character develops I may ask the reviewers who they think should be paired with who, if any.**

 **The story will be starting out just before Season 1 started giving my character time to make her appearance into their world, the world of the Young Justice characters. I don't want to piss off any serious Young Justice enthusiasts so I will keep the information as accurate as possible but with a few tweaks.**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Young Justice…just my OC(s).**

 **Character: Aaliyah Valentine, 13 years old, born January 18** **th** **1997.**

 _ **Chapter One**_

 _ **June 14**_ _ **th**_ _ **2010**_

Dark menacing clouds gathered overhead as the day went on leaving no indication that the sun would be seen until their job of drenching every living thing that was still out was completed. Aaliyah stood alongside her horse Ace, watching the clouds churn in the sky as they awaited the oncoming relief the rain would bring.

"Hmm, so what do you think Ace? Think we should head back? I'm sure my mother would kill me if we stayed out and got caught in this mess." She said with an exasperated sigh. The large animal perked his ears up at the sound of her voice and turned his head to look at her.

Aaliyah looked to him placing a hand on his neck patting him as if in understanding. "Yeah I agree. Let's get going then." She walked him over to a nearby fallen down tree stepping up on it for the leverage she would need to climb onto Ace's back. Once she was comfortable she grabbed his mane and directed him back towards the house with a slight tug and soft whistle.

They neared the fence with Ace still in a slow trot when Aaliyah bailed off of him and started sprinting towards the fence. She grabbed the wooded post and with a little help jumped the gate, not so successfully to her displeasure. Landing with a thud on her back and getting the air knocked out of her she thought to herself, _okay what in the heck possessed me to do that? Ooooh, look at that it's raining now._

Once she regained the breath that was knocked out of her she readjusted herself a bit but didn't move to get up. She lay staring at the dark clouds feeling the rain hitting her face. A moment later another face appeared over hers, she giggled as she reached up to pet Ace's nose. "I'm okay but I do feel pretty stupid for trying that, again. Guess I am just too darn short."

Ace grunted as if he agreed that she was indeed stupid and lifted his head to look towards the large house that sat on the property. Aaliyah sat up on her elbows when she heard the door slam shut and her mother's voice rang out from the front porch, "Aaliyah!"

"Ma'am?" she sat up completely now and faced the small woman that stood on the porch with her arms crossed.

"What on earth are you doing on the ground?" Her voice was soft but stern, "Have you not noticed it is raining?"

Aaliyah looked back to Ace and giggled before she faced the direction her mother was in again, "Um, I fell."

Her mother uncrossed her arms, a little panic on her face now, "Off of Ace?" She started making her way over quickly towards her daughter who still sat on the ground. She bent down and placed a hand on Aaliyah's shoulders.

"Um no." Aaliyah answered her worried mother with a little embarrassment on her face.

"No? Then what happened?" She still seemed worried but that stern tone was starting to return. She knew how her daughter was sometimes and how often she did really stupid things that could have, or should have resulted in injury.

Aaliyah looked away from her mom for a split second and then back to her. She tried to smile innocently but it obviously wasn't working out when her mother raised an eyebrow, "Okay, okay. I tried to jump the gate again. I obviously didn't make it." She flung her hands in the air in defeat.

Her mother removed the hand from her shoulder and reared it back. The sound of her hand making contact with the back of Aaliyah's head came a second later. It wasn't hard but it was enough to catch the young girl's attention as she immediately placed her own hand where her mother's had hit.

"OW!" Aaliyah shrieked giving her mom a, I-can't-believe-you-did-that, look.

"Well serves you right! You had me worried that Ace here had done this and that you might have been seriously hurt." Her mother gestured towards Ace as she spoke and then reached forward and flicked Aaliyah on her forehead.

"Mom! Okay I get it!" Aaliyah shrieked again waving her arms around and then rubbing the sting from her forehead.

Her mother's light green eyes met Aaliyah's equally light green eyes, both sat in silence for a minute. Slowly her mother's stern looked turned to one of amusement and she eventually laughed. "Come on, you can help me with dinner." She stood and reached a hand out for Aaliyah.

Aaliyah smiled at her mom and grabbed her hand, "What's in it for me?"

"The dishes." Her mother simply answered as they both walked back to the house.

"What?!" Aaliyah looked to her mom in disbelief as they stepped onto the porch.

Her mom reached for the door and opened it as she spoke, "For your little stunt that had me worried you get the dishes tonight after dinner. And no, you can't use the dishwasher." She smiled to her daughter and walked into the house.

Aaliyah followed her inside grumbling the whole way about how it was just out of fun and how much she would rather stand in the storm than do the dishes. Also, how it should technically be her mom's fault since she got her height from the small woman and if she were taller she would have made it. She knew however, no amount of complaining was going to help her, if anything it would more than likely land her another smack to the back of the head. The thought made her hand subconsciously go back to the spot her mom had hit early, "I think once today is enough." She mumbled to herself as she walked into the large kitchen.

Aaliyah was busy setting the table when her father walked in, he had been locked up in his study all day and looked absolutely exhausted. He walked passed her ruffling her dark auburn hair on the way. She tried to bat his hand away but it only caused him to chuckle and pinch her nose between his thumb and pointer finger.

"Seriously dad? I'm not five years old anymore." She protested as she grabbed his hand pulling her face away.

"Oh that's right, you're a _teenager_." he scrunched up his face sticking his tongue out at her.

Aaliyah crossed her arms as she studied her father's face that was still scrunched up, "That's quite a face for an 'adult'." She uncrossed her arms to throw the air quotes in there with the word 'adult'.

"Well who says I want to be an adult right now? Haven't you ever heard that age isn't what makes you, it's your actions…or something like that?" He continued to make the face but now a smile played into his features.

Aaliyah giggled as he seemed so childlike right then for someone that was supposed to be so serious all the time. "Well in that case I'd say you are ranging around six years old minus a good temper tantrum."

His features softened as he placed a hand on his daughter's head ruffling her hair again, "Eh, I'm ok with that. Becoming an adult is something no one can avoid but it doesn't necessarily mean you have to leave all the fun behind along with your childhood." He took his seat at the head of the table and placed his elbows on the table interlocking his fingers. He rested his chin on his fingers as he spoke again, "You might be growing up Aaliyah, but don't forget how to have a little fun in life. It doesn't always have to be so serious. If your life has come to that then you are no longer living in my books, you are just coasting until the end."

Aaliyah smiled brightly at her father, he was right, he knew when to be serious and when to have fun. Growing up was indeed boring and an unfortunate part of life but it definitely doesn't mean that with age came less fun. "I'll keep that in mind, but you know me dad." She pointed to herself with both thumbs, "This girl can't do boring for long periods of time. The results could be catastrophic."

His light chuckle lightened up the room as it always did and in turn made her smile. He nodded his head in understanding, also probably thinking about all the messes she had caused from probable boredom.

Her mom walked in a few minutes later, just as Aaliyah was laying the last fork down, with the casserole in hand. She looked to her husband as she placed the food in the center of the table and smiled, "So nice of you to join the world that exists outside of your study."

He smirked at her as she kissed his forehead before taking her seat to his left. Aaliyah took her seat to his right as they proceeded to pass around the different dishes. They had barely began eating when her father cleared his throat causing her to halt in her actions of scooping up a large amount of the casserole onto her spoon.

"I…have some important news." He paused for a moment to see if his wife and daughter were listening. When he was satisfied that he had their attention he spoke again, "I spoke with my partner today about the company's progress over the past few years. So far, everything is in check and we continue to move up on the charts which is great. We want to extend our reach even further so…" another short pause, "We will be moving…and by that I don't mean _just_ the company."

Aaliyah was now grateful that the food on her spoon hadn't made it to her mouth. With this sudden news she was sure that it would have flew out, or she would have choked on it.

She stared at her father with wide eyes, "Moving? Moving where? When?" she started to fidget in her seat more and more as the seconds passed, "What about Ace?"

Her father put his hands up to halt her, "Calm down." He said with a smile, "Your mom and I-"

"Wait, mom you knew about this?" she interrupted her dad focusing on her mom.

Her mom nodded her head with a small smile, "Yes. Your father and I spoke about this a few weeks ago."

Aaliyah looked back to her father with slightly less widened eyes, "So, why am I just now hearing about it?"

"Well," he spoke slowly, "we wanted to make sure that everything was organized. All the arrangements have been made to make this move as painless as possible."

Aaliyah nodded her head, "Okay, so what about Ace? Is there a place set up for him at this new place? And where exactly is this new place?"

"Everything is already set up for Ace. We will be moving close to a place called Happy Harbor." He gave her a minute to process the information.

"So by close _to_ you don't actually mean that we will be _there_?" she narrowed her eyes a bit with an eyebrow raised.

"Precisely, we will be just outside of the city limits but close enough. The school systems there have great marks so you should be able to transfer over without any problems. You get decent enough grades so adjusting shouldn't be too difficult and you will be starting at the beginning of the year with the rest of the current students." His smile was there but did not seem to fit with the light mood he was trying to set. "There should be plenty to do around there to fend off the boredom and the possible 'catastrophic' events that ensue when you have an episode." He air quoted her word from earlier.

Now there was the amused tone she was used to. Aaliyah seemed to think about it for a minute, looking to the ceiling tapping her thin finger on her chin. She looked back to her parents with a smile, "Sweet!"

Both of her parents seemed shocked, "What? You're okay with moving?" her mother spoke looking between her daughter and husband.

"Yep!" Aaliyah nodded her head quickly, the smile growing wider. "100 percent A-Okay!"

Her father shook his head in disbelief, "You have got to be the strangest _teenager_ I have ever met…and you just so happen to be my own flesh and blood."

She knitted her eyebrows together in slight confusion, "What do you mean?"

He reached his hand to the back of his neck scratching it as he spoke, "Well, the typical _teenager_ would throw a fit and would have to be dragged out kicking and screaming. I've seen it on occasion and it isn't pretty. Of course not all are _that_ bad but they usually have some sort of protest; friends, school, social status, or something along those lines."

"Well, just because my exterior is calm doesn't mean I'm not freaking out inside. Believe me I am, but I guess it just hasn't hit yet because nothing has been packed up at all. Everything is still in its place. Which brings me to another question, when is this move supposed to happen?" She started flailing her arms around as she spoke.

"Well I am going to be heading out to check out the property this week, I am going to drive so that I can move Ace there and get him settled. I was going to ask if you would like to accompany me and get a chance to check out the place and the surrounding area." He placed his elbows on the table like he had earlier interlacing his fingers and placing his chin on them.

Her expression read of shock with her eyes slightly widening, "Um, sure?"

"You don't sound so, _sure."_ Her mother spoke this time.

"Well, it's not that I don't want to go but isn't that place like in Rhode Island or something?" She sat back roughly in her chair, "I mean I understand that Ace is going to have to get there one way or another. That is just a long ways away from Texas."

"Well, consider it like a road trip. We don't have to rush and we can stop along the way to check stuff out but we would have to be brief since we will have Ace too. That long ride is going to make him antsy." His words made the trip sound less intimidating plus she also had to think about the fact that Ace would have to endure that long trip too.

Once again Aaliyah found herself thinking about it, she looked between her mother and father before speaking again with a nod. "Okay I'll go with you. When are we leaving?"

"Great!" Her mother clapped her hands together, "Well, tomorrow you and I will get everything set up for the trip so that you two can head out the day after." She gestured towards Aaliyah as the other person that would be helping with the trip preparations.

Aaliyah groaned and let her head fall over the back of her chair, as she stared at the ceiling she heard her father clear his throat. She lifted her head back up and looked at her parents, "Fine, can we get back to eating now, or are there more surprises you would like to bless us with?"

Her father reached over and smacked her on the back of the head lightly causing Aaliyah to wince and place her hand on the sore spot. _Dang are these two in sync with one another or something? Same freaking spot!_

Her father chuckled, "No that will be all…for now." Aaliyah shot him a quick glare before a smile formed on her face.

They ate their dinner in comfortable silence with the occasional small talk between her parents. Something she didn't care to listen to unless they would say something that would catch her attention. Most of the time, nothing, zip, nada, boring adult conversation that eventually ended with dinner. Aaliyah stood from her seat and helped her mom clear the table. She finished the dishes, completely zoned out and didn't actually realize she was done until she reached for another plate that wasn't there. Her attention momentarily brought back as she looked at the pile of clean dishes then nodded as if to approve of her own work.

She made her way to the staircase that led up to the second floor hallway, "Hey mom?!" she called out as she placed her hand on the railing.

"Yes?!" she heard her mom call out from the living room.

"I'm going to my room, I'll see you in the morning." She said loud enough for her mom to hear.

"Okay sweetie, good night!" she smiled in the direction of her mother's voice.

Once in her room she closed the door and locked it, seemed to be a habit of hers that she kept from when her parents would go into town and she would stay at the house alone. It wasn't like she was scared or anything, okay maybe a little or maybe a lot, she just did it because it made her feel safe. Well, unless there was a house fire, then locking that door was a very stupid idea.

She grabbed her cell phone scrolling through the contacts until she came across the name she was looking for, _Aaron._ She hit the call button and put the phone to her ear waiting for him to answer.

" _Hey Ali, what's up?"_ His voice sounded tired.

"Um, hey Aaron, are you okay?" The concern in her voice seemed to catch the boy's attention.

" _Oh, yeah. I'm fine, just tired. Spent all day helping my dad out at the store today."_ He chuckled lightly followed by a very audible yawn.

She laughed, "I'll say, I think I could have heard that yawn clear over here without the phone's help." He chuckled again, "So, I have some news for you, do you have a minute?"

" _Sure what's going on in your world now?"_ He yawned again.

"Okay, I promise to make this quick so there is no risk of you falling asleep while on the phone." She heard him chuckled again at her words, "We are moving, as in my family and I, out of Texas."

This seemed to wake him up rather quickly, _"You're what?! When?!"_

The smile she had, had started to fall, "Well before the end of summer I suppose. My dad and I are driving up there two days from now and taking Ace with us."

There was silence on the other end of the line, "Aaron?" She asked nervously.

" _I'm still here. Where are you moving to?"_ His tired voiced seemed to sadden as he spoke.

"Happy Harbor." At this point her smile was completely gone. He was the one person she would miss the most out of all of her friends.

" _Seriously?! That's a long ways away from here, in like Rhode Island or something."_ His surprised tone made her jump.

"That's what I said." She threw her free hand in the air in exasperation. She took a seat on her bed to continue the conversation more comfortably and to cease the pacing back and forth in her room. "My dad said that we won't be living _in_ town. They found a house just outside the city with plenty of room for Ace to roam around. He also said that the place and surrounding area are pretty nice."

There was another pause, shorter this time, before he spoke, _"I don't want you to go."_

The tone of his voice made her eyes tear up, she breathed deep to control herself from losing it though. "I don't really want to go either…even though I told my parents I didn't mind the move." She looked down at her lap pulling at a loose string on her pants and remembering how she needed to change since she fell on the ground earlier. "It's not like I have a choice though, ya know?"

A long sigh came from his end of the line, _"I know, this just sucks. My timing sucks."_ He chuckled at that last part. _"Actually timing has nothing to do with it. I just suck."_

Now she was really confused, "What does this have to do with _your_ timing Aaron?" She stopped playing with the string on her pants. Her attention was now completely focused on her friend, her guy friend, her best guy friend, and her best guy friend that she just so happened to find extremely cute. With those gorgeous blue eyes, dark hair, his smile and- _okay snap out of it Aaliyah!_ She shook her head for good measure as she refocused on the conversation.

She heard him let out a long breath, _"I just had something I wanted to tell you but…"_ he sounded nervous and Aaliyah was getting nervous as well. She wasn't dense, well not all the time, but she had a feeling she knew where this was going.

When he didn't answer again she decided to speak before the silence became awkward, "Hey, um, do you want to come over tomorrow? I have to help my mom get everything ready for my trip with my dad. We could hang out after."

" _Yeah, I could do that. I was going to take a break from my dad's store tomorrow anyways. I can help if you would like, get it done faster?"_ He seemed calmer now as he spoke.

"Sure! You know my mom, she won't turn down help if it's offered." She laughed, "Plus it will give me someone to talk to so I don't die of boredom."

He laughed, _"Okay, sounds good. I'll…see you tomorrow."_

Aaliyah smiled, "See you tomorrow. Good night."

" _Good night Aaliyah. Sleep well."_ The click on the other end indicating that he was no longer there.

She let out a breath that she felt she had been holding since he sounded like he was about to confess, what she could guess, was something that she had wanted him to confess for a long time. _Hopefully it was something else_ , she thought as she threw herself back sprawling out on her bed. She stared at the ceiling for probably about the third or fourth time that evening thinking about everything that had been thrown at her. Her right arm was now draped across her forehead and her eyes were closed as she thought, _this might be harder than I thought._

"Guess I should call and tell the others." She said to herself as she continued to lay in her bed. She moved the hand holding the phone so that it was now in front of her face but let it drop back onto the bed just as quickly. "Later."

The thought of a shower got her moving again leaving the phone laying abandoned on the bed. _I kind of already told the one person that I wanted to, the others can wait._ She grabbed clothes as she continued to think about the upcoming events which just seemed to make her slump from mental exhaustion.

"A shower and a good night's rest should help." She said to herself as she walked into her bathroom shutting the door behind her.

 **So here is the beginning of the story, it might be a little slow but it's a way to develop without going straight into something crazy. That will come later. Anyways let me know what you think. Reviews would be nice so I can see if the readers like it so far or not. Without them I am just in the dark playing a guessing game.**


	2. Chapter 2

**If you were following this story before I made the changes then I would suggest going back and reading chapter one again, otherwise you are going to be very confused. I made good on the promise to change the heck out of this story. It is a bit of a slow burner but I want my character to have time to develop and experience different events. It is still early, before season one began but I didn't just want to throw my girl out there and hope she would fit in. This way the future events will make more sense too. As far as romance and pairings and all that, I will go a lot of the way that the original set up was for the Young Justice characters. Maybe some minor interference, if you don't like it then don't read it. Simple enough right?**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Young Justice...just my OC.**

 _ **Chapter Two**_

 _ **June 15**_ _ **th**_ _ **2010**_

Aaliyah awoke with a start at the sound of thunder and the flash of light just outside of her window. She sat up quickly, maybe too quickly as her head began to throb and spin with the sudden movement. Getting out of her bed proved to be a bit of a challenge as she had somehow cocooned herself into her blanket. She fought with the blanket for a minute before finally kicking it completely off and rolling herself off of her bed.

Lightening flashed again as she stood in front of her window followed by another low rumble of thunder. The soft pitter patter of the rain could be heard as it hit the side of the house and window. Aaliyah could practically feel the boredom creeping up as she continued to stare outside.

Her eyes widened as she saw the slight reflection of herself in the glass. She turned to the large mirror connected to her dresser and let out a sigh. "Sleep was good to me last night, yep." She said as she reached a hand up to her wild hair.

The sound of the doorbell brought her out of her thoughts and with a glance over to the alarm clock on her nightstand, her eyes widened again. It read _9:37 a.m._ , even though she never got a time for his arrival today she just knew it had to be him. Aaliyah ran to her bathroom and quickly ran a brush through her longish hair putting it into a loose braid.

"Aaliyah! Aaron is here!" The sound of her mother's voice caught her just as she tied a hair band around the end of the braid. She then ran out of the bathroom stumping her toe on the door frame, "Ah! Dang it!" she yelled grabbing her foot with the now throbbing toe. Jumping around on one foot proved to be just as bad as running in the small space that was her room. Her shoes from the night before lay forgotten in the middle of the floor and she tripped on them sending her falling flat on her face.

Aaliyah grumble from her position on the floor and began picking herself up slowly, the pain in her toe still there. "So, it's gonna be one of those days huh?" She shook her head as she stood up completely.

A knock on her door had her spinning around quickly hitting herself in the face with her braided hair. She winced at the contact and then deadpanned at her run of luck so far, _it's not even noon and I am ready to freaking hit something!_ She thought as she walked to her bedroom door.

"Mom, I'll be down in a min-"she began to say as she opened the door to reveal not her mom but Aaron. "Oh…Aaron." Her tone revealing the slight surprise she had at seeing the boy that now stood just outside of her bedroom.

Aaron looked her up and down with a questioning look, he stopped at her face and raised an eyebrow, "Nice pjs. Are those…cats?" He chuckled lightly as he crossed his arms.

Aaliyah's faced flushed as she looked down at herself with wide eyes, _seriously?! Of all the days I had to pick out these pajamas!_ She mentally kicked herself. She really disliked cats yet here she stood in pink pajamas with little gray cats covering them. She looked back to Aaron who now had a smirk on his, _handsome,_ face. He was wearing a pair of worn-out blue jeans, his boots and a simple black t-shirt, but dang he made it look good. She could even see the definition in his arms since he had them crossed firmly over his slightly broad chest.

His hand waving in front of her face caused her to snap out of her observational daydreaming of the boy that stood in front of her. "Never thought I would have to say this but…I'm up here Ali." He chuckled again at her surprised reaction as he gestured up with his thumb. She shook her head and focused on his eyes which seemed to hold even more amusement as a smug look overtook his features.

"Uh, s-sorry." She cleared her throat nervously, "Just, um, give me a minute to change." He nodded, the smirk still on his face as he turned around and headed back downstairs. She closed her door and leaned her back against it taking a deep breath placing a hand over her rapidly beating heart. _Come on Aaliyah, why are you acting this way around him? Why now? We've been friends for years but, dang it, it should be illegal to have friends that look that good._

Aaliyah made her way down the stairs after finally getting herself together enough to change out of her embarrassing pajamas. Changing into a comfortable white t-shirt and gray workout shorts was her solution to three things; getting out of those embarrassing pajamas, being comfortable and keeping cool in the hot summer heat. She had seen the day before that it was going to rain until early afternoon then it was clear for the rest of the day. No way was she planning on spending all day cooped up inside, especially once her mom had run out of things for her and Aaron to do. The awkward, although very short, situation when he came up to her room to see her was enough for one day.

"Mom?" Aaliyah called out once she reached the bottom of the stairs.

"In here!" her mother called out from the kitchen.

Aaliyah walked through the opening to the kitchen to see her mom pouring a glass of tea and Aaron leaning against the island with his hands in his pockets. She smiled at Aaron when he turned his head towards her and then she looked at her mother, "So, what do you want to get done today?"

Her mom turned around laying her glass of tea on the island, "Well," she placed her hand on her chin as she thought, "I was thinking a run to town first to get stuff for y'all to eat and drink on the trip so that way the only stops made are to refill the truck. Then you and Aaron can head outside after we get back and clean out the truck and get the horse trailer ready, make sure to pack the tack as well."

Both the teens shared a quick look before nodding their agreement at the plan for the day. When Aaliyah's mother had finished her glass of tea the three of them headed out the door. It was still raining lightly so the three made a dash for the truck and jumped in closing the doors quickly.

"It should be done raining by the time we get back." Her mom said as she fastened her seatbelt and started the truck. Aaliyah and Aaron, both sitting in the back seat, followed her example and fastened theirs as well.

Aaliyah sat in the backseat looking out the window absentmindedly picking at her fingernails, a nervous habit of hers. She didn't know when she started that particular habit but that wasn't the important question right now, the important question was why she was nervous in the first place? Sitting this close to Aaron, so close that their knees touched, was not new to her. They usually sat close to one another so that they could talk in a whisper without adult interference.

Her mom had turned on the radio and began softly singing along with the song that was playing. She felt Aaron shift beside her which caused her to turn her head to look at what he was doing. She held in the gasp that nearly escaped when she realized how close his face was to hers. She simply spoke hoping her voice wouldn't betray her nervousness, "What's up?"

"So, you're moving." It wasn't a question, he simply stated a fact.

Aaliyah nodded her head, "Yeah, I told you that last night remember?"

He closed his eyes and let out a deep sigh, "Yeah I remember. Doesn't mean I like it any." He leaned back a bit with his head tilted down slightly. After a moment and another long sigh he opened his eyes again to look at her through his long dark bangs.

Aaliyah looked at him sadly but tried her best at a smile, "You can always come visit. I want to keep in contact with the few good friends I have here." He gave her a small smile at that. "Maybe, if we get moved and settle quickly enough, you and the others could plan a trip to visit? If not then we can make plans for next summer and everyone can come stay for a week or so."

Aaron nodded at the suggestion, he opened his mouth to speak again but was interrupted by Aaliyah's mom. "Ok kiddos, we are here. Let's get this over with."

The three of them completed the shopping and found everything that her mom thought they would need during the long trip. The ride back was quiet but less awkward between the two teens, the fact that they had a mound of groceries and random stuff now between them dampened any attempts at conversation. They took a bit longer than expected in town but at least it wasn't raining anymore.

"Ok you two." her mother started as she turned the key killing the engine immediately and turning herself slightly to face them. "I will get this stuff inside. You two can head over to the trailer and get it ready for the trip. Your dad can check the lights and stuff when he gets home so don't worry about any of that." It was now around 2:30 p.m. but they still had plenty of time to get the truck and trailer cleaned out.

"Ok mom." Aaliyah nodded as she opened the truck door and jumped out. She walked around the truck and headed towards the small barn that the trailer sat next to. Aaron did the same and was walking next to her before she knew it. It helped that he had longer legs than her but she always had trouble keeping up with his long strides.

"So, Caroline asked me out the other day." The randomness of the statement cause Aaliyah to stumble a bit which resulted in Aaron placing a hand on her upper arm to help stabilize her. "You ok?" he chuckled.

She looked at him and smiled, "Yeah, just wasn't expecting that one. Took her long enough though, I know you have liked her for a little while now."

"Had." He responded as they continued walking.

Aaliyah looked to her friend confused, "Had? You mean you said no? Didn't you ask _her_ out a time or two before?"

He nodded, "Yep, sure did. She said no both times."

"Well if you still like her then why did you turn her down when she finally came around?" She shook her head as she looked at him.

He shrugged his shoulders, "Guess I got over her. I don't have time to wait on someone that isn't interested." He looked to her again.

She just shook her head more, "I will never understand you." She looked at him with slightly narrowed eyes.

"What do you mean?" He looked at her with a questioning expression.

She looked forward letting out a long sigh, "Well, you have had the biggest crush on that girl for as long as I can remember. Even if she took a while she finally came around but you turned her down."

"And your point is?" he stopped walking and faced her as she too stopped walking. They were standing by the trailer now and Aaliyah glanced at the trailer before turning her attention back to her friend.

She crossed her arms and leaned against the trailer still looking at him, "Well, any normal guy would be thrilled that his dream girl finally asked them out. Even if she did take a while." She uncrossed one of her arms as to put emphasis on the last part she spoke.

He looked at her with a blank expression placing his hands in his pockets as he started to walk to the back of the trailer. Aaliyah looked at him with a hint of annoyance as he seemed to be avoiding giving her an actual explanation. He stopped at the corner of the trailer and turned his head slightly towards her, "Who said _she_ was my dream girl?" He said with a sweet smile.

Aaliyah didn't say anything as she watched him continue on, disappearing behind the trailer. She stood stock still, processing his words, ' _who said she was my dream girl?' Then, he likes someone else? Why didn't he tell me this? We usually tell each other everything._

She heard the sound of the latch being moved and the door creaked open. Finally finding her feet, she walked slowly around to the back of the trailer to join him. They cleaned out the trailer in silence but noticed the small glances they would give one another during the process.

Once they were done with the trailer they headed for the truck in silence until Aaron spoke up. "Random food for thought but you know why we make great friends?"

Aaliyah looked to her friend as they continued on, "Why is that?"

"Well besides all the other obvious reasons, but did you ever notice that we both spell our names with _two A's_ instead of just one?" He held up two fingers when he spoke the word 'two'.

"People spell names different all the time. Nothing really special about that." She shrugged playing like she didn't care when inside she was laughing at his total randomness.

"Well, honestly what are the chances that my parents and yours chose to spell our names with two A's?" He smiled at her, "I'm tellin ya, we were meant to be friends." He winked at her then faced forward.

Aaliyah just shook her head before chuckling, "You are such a dork sometimes. Did you know that?"

He smiled at her as they stopped at the truck shrugging in a nonchalant manner, "Yeah but you still keep me around so I must be doing something right, right?"

She placed a hand on her chin acting like she had to think about it for a minute which made him step towards her. She looked up to his much taller and broader frame with a sly smile, "Eh, your entertaining so yeah."

"That's it, I'm just entertainment for you?" he feigned hurt which made her smile grow.

She nodded as she quickly spun around, smile still in place, and walked around the truck to open the driver side door. "And you're sexy so that's a plus too." She mumbled to herself, or at least thought she said it low enough for only her ears.

It didn't take long to clean out the truck, her mom usually kept it pretty clean. The two teens walked back towards the house once they had finished and took a seat on the porch swing. They swayed back and forth slowly as they stared out at the vast amount of land the house sat on.

Aaron looked down at his watch after a few more minutes of silence, "My dad will be here in about 20 minutes." He looked back up but faced Aaliyah this time.

Aaliyah looked at him and smile, "Sorry about the silent treatment."

"Yeah about that," he said raising an eyebrow, "did I do something wrong?"

She quickly shook her head, "No, no. I was just thinking." She looked away from him for a moment and then back to him, he still had that look of question. "Look I know it sounds stupid but I was." She stuck her tongue out at him which made him laugh.

"Well, what were you thinking about then that caused you to be so quiet?" He asked when he had stopped laughing. Her cheeks turned a light shade of pink that she could feel grow darker the more she thought about it. The silence continued to grow until he chuckled, "Must have been something good to make your face turn _that_ red." He pointed to her.

She swatted his hand away trying her best to glare at him but it was so hard when he was smiling like that. The thoughts started to flow through her mind, _it's because he is my best friend that I just so happen to find extremely attractive! Those bright eyes in contrast to his dark hair and those dimples that can been seen when he smiles just gives me chills!_ She screamed in her head.

She let out a frustrated breath, "It's nothing." She turned her head so that she was looking out over the vast area again.

"Oh?" His eyebrows shot up before he smirked playfully at her, "I thought it might have been because you thought I was 'sexy'." He did the air quotes at the word 'sexy'.

Aaliyah immediately snapped her head back to look at him with wide eyes. "Wh-what?!" She breathed heavily, "Why would you think that?" her voice broke a little at that last question and she internally punched herself for having the reaction that she did.

"Well isn't that another reason you keep me around other than entertainment?" He was really getting a kick out of this and she could tell which made her eyes narrow at him. "I'm pretty sure I heard it correctly." He smirked.

"That word doesn't ring a bell." She tried her best to play it off.

He leaned in closer, the smirk and his amusement only seemed to grow as she seemed to grow redder the closer he got. "You're turning red again." He was close enough that she could feel his breath on her face but she continued to try to keep her composure.

The heat on her face was rising but she didn't want to give him the satisfaction of letting on that he was the cause of it. She put on an emotionless mask, "It's hot outside so of course I'm red."

He leaned in closer making her suck in a breath, "It's hot outside huh?" His nose was touching hers at this point and she could feel her hands start to shake. "Am I making you nervous?"

"No. What makes you think I'm nervous?" She faltered in her attempt to keep the mask.

"Your hands are shaking." He whispered. Her eyes widened slightly and she placed both hands on her lap and dug her nails into her legs to stop them from shaking. An audible gulp was heard as she tried to swallow the knot in her throat, he was slowly moving closer and closer. She couldn't move, as much as she wanted to she just couldn't. Part of her was hoping he would stop but another part was hoping he wouldn't. He angled his head slightly as his lips neared hers, the touch was so light and she went to move in on instinct. Just as she did so the front door swung open causing them both to pull apart quickly and stare at the door with wide eyes.

"There you two are!" Her mom's cheery voice broke the silence, "Aaron I was going to ask if you were going to stay for dinner tonight or not?"

Aaron stood from the swing and scratched the back of his head, "Actually Mrs. Valentine, my dad is on his way to get me. He should be here soon but thanks for the offer."

Her mom smiled at the boy and looked to Aaliyah, "Well in that case dinner will be ready in about an hour or so." She looked back to Aaron, "And there is plenty of room if you decided to stay." She smiled one last time before turning to walk back inside. Both teens let out a relieved sigh and looked at one another.

A second later Aaron's phone buzzed in his pocket. He reached in and took out the phone to see that he had gotten a text message from his dad.

"Everything ok?" Aaliyah asked as she took a slow step towards her friend.

"Yeah, my dad will be here in a few minutes." He sighed putting his phone back into his pocket.

He looked at the dirt road that led out to the main road a set of headlight in the distance indicating an approaching vehicle. He then looked to the girl that stood next to him also watching the approaching vehicle, _it's either now, or never._ He thought as he stepped closer to her.

Aaliyah wasn't paying much attention so the sudden contact made her gasp in surprise. She hesitated for a moment before wrapping her arms around Aaron to return the hug. Once again she felt her heart speeding up at the close proximity and prayed that he couldn't feel her heart beating through her chest.

He pulled away slightly his arms still loosely wrapped around her shoulders, "Ya know, you might actually get to see one of those superheroes out there?"

Aaliyah furrowed her brows, "What do you mean?" Once again he was being totally random.

He shrugged his shoulders a bit, "Well, they have been seen all over the place by people…you know when they are out saving the world and stuff. But most of them are up close by where you will be moving, at least the cool ones."

An amused look came across Aaliyah's face, "And who would you define as _cool_?"

The boy looked down at her and smirked, "Well Batman of course. He has that whole mysterious, will-never-frighten-me vibe and all time intimidating look. The guy could make a crook wet himself with one look, its freaking awesome!" he exclaimed.

"You are such a dork." She laughed.

"Hey I'm just sayin, if you come across any of them get an autograph or something!" he said raising his eyebrows.

"I'll make sure to do that." She thought about it for a moment, "then again, if I'm that close then I am probably going to be in some kind of trouble."

"Well stay out of trouble. We all know how you are when you are bored." He gave her a knowing look.

She scoffed at him and looked to the side, "As if! I will probably end up locking myself in my room and never see the light of day again up there. You know how I am around people I don't know and up there I know no one." She let out a long sigh, "I'm going to become a freaking hermit!"

He laughed at her childishness, "You will be fine. A girl as pretty as you should have no problems making new friends." The words left his mouth so fast he didn't have time to stop himself.

She stiffened in his arms and looked at his face, his expression was of slight shock. She blinked slowly, "You think I'm pretty?" her voice was low.

He looked at her in slight embarrassment and moved one hand behind his head while the other stayed wrapped around her. Scratching his head he spoke, "Well, actually I think you are _beautiful_ but that's beside the point." He said quickly. "Point is you seem like the type of person that is easy to approach and talk to. Even if that is not like you at all that _is_ the way you look to outsiders."

She just stood there stunned as she looked at her best friend, the one that she was developing a major crush on and the one that just said she was _beautiful_. Before she had the chance to speak the vehicle that had been coming up the long driveway stopped in front of the house. The warmth he created around her was lost when he removed his other arm and backed away from her a step. Even in the hot summer air she felt a cold sensation run throughout her body at the loss of his touch.

"Hey dad!" he yelled waving his hand and receiving a wave from the older man.

Aaliyah stood still on the porch now looking at the truck that sat in the yard and the man that sat in the driver seat. She waved and smiled at him as he waved at her with his own friendly smile in place. When the older man turned his attention to the trucks radio Aaliyah turned her attention back to Aaron.

"Well, I guess I will see you in a week or so?" She didn't mean for it to come out as a question but it did.

He smiled and nodded opting not to speak as he might say something again that would make him hate his big mouth. Instead he did something else, as he turned to walk off the porch he planted a soft kiss on her cheek before completely losing his senses. He didn't notice the blush on Aaliyah's face but he could feel the one on his as he hurried to towards the waiting truck.

Aaliyah touched her the cheek that he had kissed, it tingled underneath her fingertips. She could feel the heat on her cheeks as she watched the truck pull away and grow smaller and smaller. "Why did he have to make this move ten times harder that it should be?" she questioned out loud.

"Because as hard as this move might be for you, it is equally as hard for him." Aaliyah spun around at the sound of her mother's voice. Her mom smiled warmly at her as she stood in the doorway of the house.

"Um, how long have you been standing there?" she asked with horror written all over her face.

Her mom chuckled, "Long enough to be able to tell you that, that boy cares about you more than a friend my dear dense daughter."

Aaliyah deadpanned at her mom's statement, "I get it honest." She said pointedly towards her mother.

Her mom bursts into laughter, "Yes, yes you do."

Aaliyah rolled her eyes and made to walk passed the laughing woman but was stopped when a hand landed on her shoulder. She looked over to her mother who was now smiling brightly at her, "I knew from the moment that you two became friends that this would happen. Yes he is 15 but you will be turning 14 in the next few months so it's not that big of a gap." Her mom pointed out using her hands to mimic a scale to weigh the age difference.

"I don't think he likes me like that mom." Her head fell a bit as she spoke.

Her mom's smile grew warm, "Trust me sweetie, he does."

Aaliyah threw her hands into the air in exasperation, "Well what difference does it make now? We are moving so that pretty much kills it." Her arms dropped limply at her sides and she let her head fall back with a groan. "What if I meet someone up there? Then what?" She said still looking up.

Her mother sighed, "Your feelings will let you know."

"Huh? What is that supposed to mean?" the confusion was very evident on Aaliyah's face.

"It's hard to explain it. I dated of course before I met your father. I thought I loved them but when I met your dad, there was something different. I felt free, like I finally found the one thing I was meant to find to make my life happy." She smiled to her daughter, "Make sense?"

"Um, sure. Anyways can we get off the topic of love and all that? I mean I'm 13 going on 14, I really don't need to think that deep into it right now." She started walking passed her mom and into the house. "I'll think about that stuff when I have time. Right now I got this move and this long trip on my mind and I just want to chill out and watch some movies." She smiled at her mom as they both entered the house together.

 **Okay reviewers do what you do! For those wondering where the Young Justice characters are, be patient they are coming soon I promise. Otherwise I wouldn't have put this story in the YJ category.**


	3. Chapter 3

**Another chapter! I would like to say thank you everyone that has taken the time to read this story. Reviews are slow but I have noticed that a lot of stories in this category are low on them. I take no offense to the lack there of but there really is no way of know what anyone thinks without them. Anyways, the characters are slowly starting to come into the story as well as future development of friendships between my OC and the YJ team.**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Young Justice.**

 _ **Chapter Three**_

 _ **Three days later…**_

The long trip from their soon to be ex-home to Happy Harbor was just that, _long._ It was pretty uneventful and they decided to keep the stops to a minimum in order to make it there faster. Her father had decided to stop about half way and rent rooms for the night so that he was not driving sleep deprived.

They made their arrival late in the evening on the 18th of June, so they decided to save checking out the area for the following day. Ace on the other hand seemed to be as happy as can be once he was able to stretch his long legs. As soon as he was taken to the smaller fenced in area he immediately bolted, flinging his head back in excitement.

Aaliyah stood at the gate leaning on it with her arms crossed in front of her and resting her chin on her forearm. She watched Ace as he continued to run the smaller space, it was just big enough for him to pick up enough speed before he had to slow it down again.

The soft wind caught her hair and whipped it around behind her, it was relaxing and peaceful here and she decided that she could live with that. She smiled when Ace came walking up to the gate, a wild excited look in his eyes and his mane completely tangled and frayed.

"I see someone is happy now, huh big guy?" She reached up and scratched his nose gently, "You seem to have taken a liking to this place already. At least one of us is content." She let out a weary sigh as she let her hand fall to rest on the gate once more.

The place was very beautiful, that was a detail she picked up on right away. The house, which looked like a massive two story log cabin, was absolutely beautiful. She had already gotten to see her soon to be bedroom which was huge compared to the other one, with a private bathroom. The inside was very clean and spacious, her mother was going to have a time with this place. The image of her mom going into décor overload filled her mind every time she stepped into another room.

The area for Ace was just beyond excellent, the larger fenced in pasture stretched out as far as the eye could see with a small pond surrounded with a few trees. The smaller area that he was in now was roughly a half acre and was very well kept, a large troth for water sat in the corner and an empty bale feeder sat in the middle of the area. In all, the place had more potential than she had hoped for, the only thing missing were her friends that were now well over a thousand miles away.

"Aaliyah!" The sound of her father's voice pulled her out of whatever thoughts that were plaguing her mind. She turned around to see him standing on the porch with a huge grin plastered on his face. He was completely beside himself with the new place and his excitement escalated when they finally reached their destination.

"Yeah?" she finally spoke up letting him know that she had heard him.

"I know we said we would leave the exploring for tomorrow but what do ya say we go grab a bite to eat somewhere?" There was still enough light in the sky to make a trip into the new town and she had to admit the curiosity was building up.

"Sure, that sounds fine." She turned and gave Ace one last pat on the nose before making her way to the truck.

They were able to find a small diner that suited her just fine. It was nice to see a place like this in town and she decided that she would make an effort to come back here as often as possible. The two of them ate their food while occasionally speaking their opinions of the new property.

"Well what do you think so far?" her father spoke after taking a sip of his drink.

"It's really nice. To be perfectly honest, I wasn't expecting much but I was really surprised. The area is really well kept and the house is just beautiful." She held her half eaten burger in her hands as she spoke, looking down thoughtfully and then back to her father with a small shrug.

"That's great! It's good to hear that because, well…I was thinking of making the official move before the middle of July." Aaliyah had taken another bite of her burger when he spoke which resulted in her nearly choking on it. Her father looked at her with a puzzled expression, "Too soon? From the sound of it you seemed okay with the place."

She took a swig of her drink to help regain herself, "Yeah the place is awesome but what about the other house? I haven't heard you or mom talk about selling it, or plans of that kind."

Her father looked at her guiltily, "Well actually it has already sold."

"Huh?" her eyes widened as she thought, _well what else has been kept from me? It had already sold?! Seriously?!_

"Last week to be exact. We made arrangements to have movers over while I was here, so by the time we get back everything will be packed. The truck is scheduled to leave soon after and deliver everything here." He stated, thoughtfully looking at his daughter. He understood that this must be difficult for her even if she did not show it initially.

Aaliyah just stared at him with complete bewilderment, "So, what about all my friends? What about yours and mom's friends? Are we just supposed to up and leave without saying goodbye?"

"And there is that teenage mind on moving, no we are not going to leave without saying goodbye. In fact, John Collins and his family are planning a get together for everyone at their place. Since most of our stuff will be gone we will stay with them for a few days until we leave." He tried to smile but the look on her face was making it hard for it to be genuine.

Aaliyah's face dropped to the table, "Well at least I'll have a few days to spend with them." She slumped down into the booth and laid her arms on the table.

 _ **June 30**_ _ **th**_ _ **…**_

Boxes now stacked not so neatly around the room created a kind of makeshift maze, good thing the room was pretty big. Her parents were at a meeting with some big head officials going over the plans for the business so Aaliyah sat at home alone. With the music turned up loud enough she could feel the vibrations through the floor, she started to slowly unpack.

It had been a little over a week since the first trip to the new house and everything she owned now sat in the once empty space. Now it was up to her to organize it as best she could and she was not looking forward to it. She hadn't realized just how much of a packrat she was until she walked into the room and saw the wall of boxes in front of her.

"This, S. U. C. K. S.!" For some reason spelling it out seemed to solidify just how much she meant it. Slowly, one by one, the number of boxes diminished and she could finally see the dark cherry wood floor. It was a long process but after about four hours she had finally, _finally,_ unpacked everything. The room was starting to look like her room with the neatly made queen sized bed, old roll top desk by the large window, various rustic furniture placed here and there, and finally the brand new saddle she had been given just before they had left.

Being it was new and very beautifully made with the intricate tooled designs in the leather and shiny embellishments, she opted to place it in her room. It was too nice to put in the dusty tack room where her very used and worn saddles sat collecting dust. So naturally her room now smelled of leather and she honestly preferred it to some flowery scent of some air freshener.

"Well that's that." She clapped her hands and let out a huff. "Time to go see Ace."

It had been about a week since they had arrived at the new house and most of the boxes had been unpacked with the exception of a few that held some of the not so important items. Aaliyah's mother had convinced her to going to town for some "girl time". At first being a little against the idea but it quickly changed when her mom mentioned the diner that her father had found the last time. It didn't take the teen long to be ready wearing a pair of cut-off jean shorts, white t-shirt and her favorite pair of black converse.

On the way to town Aaliyah had made a decision and asked her mom to find a salon to go to while they were there. Her long hair had finally gotten to be a hassle and she was getting tired of trying to figure out what to do with it.

"Are you sure you want to do this?" Her mom asked with uncertainty as her daughter now sat in the hairstylist's chair.

"It's just hair mom, don't look so broken about it. It will grow back." Aaliyah answered with a shrug of her shoulders. She knew her mother loved the long hair but she wasn't the one that had to deal with it on a daily basis.

The hairstylist whose name they found out soon after was Mindy, stood behind Aaliyah looking at her through the reflection of the large mirror. She placed her hands on the back of the chair and leaned forward slightly, "So, what do you want to do? Have any ideas?"

The smile that crept across her face made her mother's face blanch, "Yep. I want it cut like this." She showed the stylist a picture of the style she wanted and the young woman smiled at her.

"Oh that is going to look so cute on you." She grabbed the fabric to drape over Aaliyah's clothes before she began and looked at the older woman standing next to her. "Don't worry, I will take good care of her." The smile did somewhat ease the worried woman but she still looked a tad sad that all of her daughter's hair was about to get chopped off.

"Ok, if you are sure, here we go." Mindy held up the scissors and smiled, with the excited nod from Aaliyah she began. When it was all said and done her mother couldn't contain the huge smile that was now plastered on her face.

"Wow! That actually looks really good. It fits you!" She clapped her hands together as she gushed at her daughter.

Aaliyah stared at her new hairstyle, it was very cute and now stopped about three inches below her chin in the front going up at a dramatic angle to the shorter strands in the back. The back was stacked in layers, Mindy showed her the longest of the layers being about four inches long when held up. Her bangs had also been cut to put a little more drama to the cut and it fell around her face in messy slightly wavy strands.

"I love it!" the smile could no longer be contained as she stared at herself in the mirror. Reaching up to run her hand through her now short hair, the lightness felt foreign but in a good way.

They paid the girl for the awesome work and made their leave for the small diner for lunch. If she knew her mother like she did the nourishment was a must. The last time they had a girl's day she felt ready to collapse by the end of the excursion.

Her ears were filled with the sound of chatter once they opened the door and it almost halted her right on the spot. She didn't do very well with large crowds but her mother ushered her inside causing her to stumble a bit. There were a lot more people in the diner this time, but it made sense being that she and her father had gone later in the night. It was around noon now so the amount of people was to be expected.

A waitress walked up to them with a soft smile, "Hello, just take a seat anywhere you like. Someone will be over shortly to take your order." She gestured to the diner and then looked back at the two before turning around and going behind the counter.

Once looking around, Aaliyah noticed that a lot of the individuals in the diner were around her age, or a bit older. Probably the other kids that went to the local middle school and high school. "Um." She hesitated when she noticed that a few of them had turned their attention to her, a few held amused looks as they gave her a once over.

Aaliyah began backing up slowly when she felt a hand on her back, "Don't be so skittish. Now come on lets go sit down over there." Her mother pointed to an open booth that sat along the far wall. She felt herself being pushed slightly in the direction and absentmindedly moved her feet. They sat in a booth surrounded by other teenagers that were lost in conversation paying no mind to the two.

Another young waitress came over as soon as they were seated and handed them a menu, "What can I get you two ladies to drink?" She asked sweetly holding up her pen and pad.

Aaliyah spoke first, "I'll have a coke please." The waitress looked at her with a bit of amusement and wrote down her order. She then turned her attention towards the older woman.

"Oh just get me a sweat tea please." The young girl nodded and wrote down the order. She took one last glance at the two before going to get the drinks.

Aaliyah took a chance to look around the space noticing a table with two boys talking excitedly. She then noticed a young girl a year or two older than her and a taller boy sit with them. The two boys continued on as if they hadn't noticed the other two sit down. Her attention then drifted around to the different tables, a few times feeling embarrassed as some of the occupants made eye contact.

After having enough of getting caught looking around and receiving a few unwelcome winks from some of the boys in the room, she sank into the booth trying to conceal herself. That of course became a bit more of a challenge once the waitress returned with the drinks.

"So where are you two ladies from exactly?" The question was one that had been asked several times since they had been in town and gone into several stores. The accents were a dead giveaway to them being, well, not from here. The question to Aaliyah's displeasure was a bit loud and it attracted some attention that she wished it hadn't'.

She looked around at the numerous eyes that now settled on her and her mother, _oh wow this is just embarrassing!_ Her hand instinctively hit her head just like it always did when she was embarrassed.

"Obviously we aren't from here." The rude tone came out without her even trying and earned her a displeased glare from her mom. "What?" She threw her hands up in the air. The waitress shifted in her spot now a bit uncomfortable as Aaliyah looked at her with hardened eyes.

"I'm sorry for my daughter's lack of manners. I know I taught her better but it seems like she might have left 'em at home today." The kind words her mom spoke to the waitress made Aaliyah scowl.

"Oh, it's ok. That was a pretty random question, I didn't mean to catch you off guard." The sheepish smile on the waitress' face indicated that she truly was sorry.

The look that her mother was giving said to either apologize for being rude, or suffer the consequences later on. With a low groan she turned her attention to the waitress, her face and tone holding no emotion, "I'm sorry for my rudeness. I guess I just keep forgetting that the way I talk is _that_ different and noticeable here." A quick look around the room caused her cheeks to heat up, the chatter that had filled the room early had dimmed and a lot of eyes were on her.

Another groan escaped her lips when she turned to place her elbows on the table and hid her face in the palms of her hands. A soft chuckle made her peek through her fingers in the direction it was coming from to land on an older looking red headed boy. He had been the one talking so excitedly earlier to the black haired boy which she now noticed looked around her age, _and why was he wearing shades in here_? The girl and the taller boy she walked in with were looking at her too which made her wish the floor would just open up and swallow her right then and there.

"Um, are you by chance ready to order?" The hesitation was evident as the waitress spoke. Her stance was even more of an indicator that now she was a bit uncomfortable from the earlier exchange.

Aaliyah order what she had, had the first time and her mom made a similar order minus the cheese on her burger. The tension was building in the room before the chatter started again but it was enough that Aaliyah made the decision to take a breather.

"Hey, mom, I'm gonna take a step outside. I need some air." She stood before her mom had a chance to respond and turned to walk out. Not before noticing the looks she got from the table of four that was just a little ways away from the booth she had been sitting in.

Her phone was now in her hands fully intended to be used to send a text to someone, anyone. Thoughts of home, well not home anymore, made her slouch as she found a bench just outside the diner. She plopped down with a huff and looked at the dark screen of the phone.

"Hey." The voice ripped her from her thoughts and she looked up slowly with a lazy expression. It was the red headed boy that had apparently found something about her funny earlier. This annoyed her so her first reaction to him was a frown and raised eyebrow.

"Um, hi." The smile on his face had her holding in laughter as best she could. The sour mood she was in was slowly dissipating but she just wasn't in the mood to let it go just yet. After all she didn't even know this boy so she spoke again trying her best to keep her tone emotionless, "Can I help you?"

"Hmm? Oh, mind if I sit?" he chuckled and then scratched the back of his head with a slight hint of embarrassment showing on his face but the smile didn't fade.

Aaliyah shifted slightly to allow room for him to sit and additional space between them, "Go for it." She gestured towards the open space.

He happily sat down twisting his body slightly so as to face her, "The names Wally." He said pointing a thumb at his chest.

She had gone back to looking at her phone again so when he spoke once more she looked up. "Hi Wally." Her attention slowly turned back to her phone.

His expression toned down a bit as he looked a bit confused now, "Aren't you going to tell me yours?"

Looking up once again she saw the small smirk now on his face instead of the huge grin. Her features softened as she looked at him, _why am I acting this way? He is just trying to be friendly right? I always have my guard up around people but now I am just being plain rude._

Not wanting to ruin any chances of making at least one friend in this unfamiliar place she decided to put her ways of usually closing herself off just this once. With a long sigh she finally spoke, "Look, Wally, as long as you are not trying to start up a conversation just to hear and make fun of my accent then I will tell you my name. Deal?"

He looked at her with a softer expression, "Sure but why would I want to make fun of your accent beautiful?" a cocky smirk formed at the last word.

The look on her face changed from neutral to slight shock, _well then he is very brave huh?_

"You're an interesting one, that's for sure." Her statement cause him to chuckle.

"Yeah I've heard that a time or two, now you going to tell me your name?" He asked again as he smiled at her.

"Aaliyah."

"Nice. Pretty name for an equally pretty girl." He placed his hand on his chin as he seemed to think, "Hey, my friends and I are going to the beach later, want to join?"

Once again she was caught off guard at his openness, "U-um."

"Oh come on it'll be fun. Plus I'll be there." He winked and wiggled his eyebrows at her which made her giggle.

Normally she would tell a guy that talked to her like that to beat it, but there was something about him that said he was truly being friendly even with the randomness of calling her 'beautiful' and 'pretty'. For a moment the small conversation had provided her with a much needed distraction from her depressing thoughts of her old home.

"Ya know what, that sounds like just the thing I need." A genuine smile finally made it to her face as she looked at the boy who now had just as big a smile on his.

"Sweet!" His fist shot into the air which caused her to jump at his enthusiasm.

"You gonna tell me what time?" He paused with confusion at her question. "Or do you just want me to wander aimlessly around till I find you?"

"Oh, right." He smiled, "Um you could meet us here, say in an hour, and we can walk there. It's not that far."

Aaliyah thought about it, she would need to buy a swimsuit while she was out then since there wouldn't be enough time to go home and change. She turned to the boy and nodded, "Deal. See you then." She rose from her seat and he followed suit extending his hand to her.

She took his hand and they shook once, "It's a date then." He said with a cocky smirk. The mention of the word, even if it had been just a joke, made her choke on her intake of air.

Before she could say another word her mom had opened the door of the diner, "There you are, food is at the table." She looked to her daughter and then noticed the young boy that stood next to her, "Oh hello there." She smiled. "Making friends already I see."

"It would seem so." Aaliyah spoke as she looked at Wally. "Hey mom, would you mind if I went to the beach with Wally here and his friends?"

Her mother stood still for a moment looking back and forth between the two teens, "I don't see why not, just be careful. You know what to do in case of trouble." The stern look on her face got Aaliyah's attention as well as Wally's.

"Yes ma'am." She looked back to Wally as her mom slipped back inside the diner, "Well looks like it's officially on. See you in an hour." He nodded his head excitedly shooting her a thumbs up. The two walked back inside and sat at their previous tables. Aaliyah couldn't help but shoot a glance over to the table the boy, Wally, was sitting. He seemed to be explaining something to his friends and then they all looked her way, smiles on their faces, except for the one boy who kept a look of indifference. The other three waved at her and she waved quickly before looking away again, _well at least I am on my way to killing the boredom._

 **Reviews are nice, yes nice :) hope y'all enjoyed this chapter.**


	4. Chapter 4

**So next chapter is up and it is so far the shortest, sorry. I had a chance to really think this story over the last 24 hours. It will eventually go into Season 2, but the years in between will be focused on my OC and her experience during that time. I would like to thank all the readers and thank the ones that are still following this story.**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Young Justice.**

 _ **Chapter Four**_

 _ **A little over an hour later…**_

Aaliyah stood outside the diner that she had been in earlier, a quick glance at her watch indicating that he was now about 10 minutes late. A groan escaped as she thought that maybe it had just been a mean trick to see if she would actually show up or something. It has happened before and the embarrassment from those times was still fresh in her mind, even if it had been quite some time since those incidents.

She sat down on the bench once again, leaning her head back on the brick wall of the diner. "I am such an idiot for coming back." She leaned forward to her bag and searched for her phone to call her mother. Lost in thought she didn't notice a figure walk up and stop in front of her.

"Hey." She looked up with a start, her wide eyes narrowed a bit when she saw who the owner of the voice was. "Mind if I sit?" She shook her head so he took the chance to take the open seat next to her.

"You're late dude." Her tone about as emotionless as when she spoke to him earlier.

"Yeah sorry about that, but I'm here now." He smiled sheepishly running a hand through his red hair. "Are you mad?"

She let out a sigh, "No, I just thought that maybe I was a fool for coming back is all." She looked at him as she gestured to the area around them.

"Huh?" he looked at her a bit confused, "You really thought I wouldn't show? Awe come on beautiful have more faith in me than that."

"Ok, well I am glad that you showed up, but…" she looked away from him trying to hide her embarrassment.

His wide smile faded, "But?" urging her on to finish what she wanted to say.

"Well, you asked my name earlier so how's about you use it instead of 'beautiful'?" she looked back at him, a faint pink hue on her cheeks.

"Oh," he cleared his throat as he spoke, "sure, sorry."

She smiled at him as he stood from his seat and extended his hand out to her. When she grabbed it he helped pull her up before turning around to walk in the opposite direction, "I just call 'em like I see 'em." He spoke over his shoulder with a smirk.

The shock took a minute to wear off before she was having to sprint a little to catch up to him. They walked the rest of the way in silence, both stealing a glance at the other. In the midst of the silence Aaliyah opted to listen to some music. She pulled out her headphones and put them in, connected them to her phone and searched her playlist for something she was in the mood for. Smiling when she stopped on one of her favorite rock bands and hitting play, the music quickly filling her mind and the silence around her.

Wally looked at her with a curious expression tapping her on the shoulder. She looked at him as he said something that she could not hear due to the music. With a quick 'sorry' she pulled one of the earbuds out, "I'm sorry, what did you say?"

"I was asking what you were listening too." He grinned.

"Oh, just one of my favorite rock bands." She went to put the earbud back in but stopped, the look on his face drawing her attention. "What?"

"Rock? Really?" He questioned in slight disbelief.

"Um, yeah. Problem?" She nodded her head slowly speaking in an accusatory tone.

"No! No problem…I just didn't take you as the type to listen to it is all." His steps slowed as he turned and started walking backwards. He placed his hands in his pockets and shrugged his shoulders.

"And what type do you see me as?" She lowered her head in a defensive manner.

"More like the soft music type, maybe something a little more…I don't know, _girlie?_ " He looked skyward as he spoke, seeming to think about the words as he spoke. He snapped his head back down to meet her gaze when he heard laughter, actual genuine laughter. "What?"

"You couldn't be more wrong buddy." She laughed a little louder at his expression of shock, "I am definitely not into that, what you called it, _girlie_ stuff."

"Well what are you in to then?" He turned to face forward once again but tilted his head to see the girl that walked beside him.

About this time the beach came into view and the two could hear chatter and what sounded like music playing. They must have been getting close to the others and Aaliyah felt that old nervousness slowly creeping back up.

She looked back to Wally and realized she hadn't answered his question, "Well, I do not like crowds, never really been a social butterfly."

He chuckled which made her glare at him, "Yeah, I noticed that back at the diner." He pointed behind him with his thumb. "Sorry, go on."

"Yeah, well I'd rather be at home playing video games, watching horror movies, riding my horse or riding ATVs. I like being outside but I would rather be alone, I like the peace and quiet. Listening to music is my go to when I need an escape, I just get lost in it." A far off look overtook her as she thought about being at home, listening to her music and chowing on junk food.

"Like music that much huh?" He picked up on her longing look when she spoke of her love for music. He understood that most of the time he came off as a playboy, but he did pay attention from time to time.

"I'd rather be put in the nuthouse then live without it!" She looked at him stone serious, with a slight look of horror then fell silent. A moment later the two burst out laughing.

"Hi!" At that moment Aaliyah realized that they were now standing where the others were. The girl she had seen at the diner earlier had come up to her with a big welcoming smile holding out her hand. "I'm Megan! I am so glad you came!"

Aaliyah gave her the best smile she could conjure up reaching for the older girl's hand, "Hi, I'm Aaliyah." Surprise overtook her when the girl pulled her into a tight hug then pulled back quickly with her hands on Aaliyah's upper arms. "Um, Megan?"

The older girl beamed at her, "Yes?"

"Have you ever heard of personal space? Cause you are totally invading mine right now." She replied pointedly with a hint of annoyance.

"Oh! Sorry." Megan took a quick step back. Aaliyah noticed how odd the girl moved, it was too smooth as if she just flowed back. She quickly shook the thoughts from her head thinking maybe the shock of the unexpected contact had rattled her more so than she thought.

Wally stiffened a bit at what Megan had done, of course he noticed it and saw the look Aaliyah had given her. "Hey Robin?" He started as the boy stood beside him. He looked at Robin who nodded his head in a silent understanding approaching Megan.

"Hi Aaliyah, you can call me Rob." He smiled warmly at her though he was less energetic about his introduction, probably so as not to startle the girl anymore. He looked at Megan as he stopped next to her, "Hey Megan can I see you for a sec?"

"Hmm? Oh sure." She looked at him then back to Aaliyah, "I'll be right back!" She waved as she followed Robin.

Once they were out of earshot Robin spoke up, "Hey Megan, look you need to be more careful."

Megan looked at Robin a bit confused, "Careful with what?"

"The 'step' you took away from Aaliyah, you didn't step at all. It was slight and almost completely unnoticeable but myself and Wally both saw it. I don't think Aaliyah did but let's not chance it ok?" He spoke in a lowered tone so that their guest had even less chance of hearing their conversation.

"I'm sorry, I didn't even notice I had done it." She looked down and Robin place a hand on her shoulder. Robin smiled at her before walking back over to Wally and Aaliyah, "Ok, no more slip-ups. I got this!" Megan told herself with determination.

Megan walked back to the small group with a smile, "Ok, who is hungry?" She didn't even have to ask twice as Wally sprinted passed her towards the food. Robin followed soon after which left Aaliyah and Megan, "I wanted to apologize if I came on a little strong. I was just excited about making a new friend, that's a girl."

Aaliyah mustered up her strength and smiled at the older girl, "It's ok Megan. No harm done." Megan returned the smile and turned to join the boys before they ate all the food, well before Wally ate all the food of course. After a short breather, Aaliyah started to make her way over to the others trying to show confidence in her strides. She was halted suddenly when a shadow crossed her path, her eyes followed the shadow's movement as it started to circle her. Placing a hand over her eyes to shield them from the bright sun, she looked up to see, _a crow? How strange._

The bird continued to circle her, descending slightly before finally flying to a nearby tree and disappearing in the dense leaves. Her eyes lingered on the tree the bird had went in but soon refocused her attention walking the remainder of the way towards the others.

Everything started off fine until more people started making their way to the area. Aaliyah started to grow increasingly nervous, the amount of people now surrounding them made her very uncomfortable. She pushed away from the others and opted to sit on the large blanket Megan had brought instead of joining them in their game of volley ball. More people started to join and she felt like a burden to the players that were actually good at the game.

Her face burned bright red when she realized that she was now just in her swimsuit, noted that this was a beach and that was the proper attire, she felt extremely exposed. She pulled her knees to her chest and laid her chin on them, wrapping her arms loosely around her legs. Watching the game go on was interesting as she began to pin point the serious gamers and sore losers as to the ones that were just there to enjoy it.

Her bag sat about a foot away from her so she decided to buck up and reach for it so she could listen to some music. It always helped when she was stressed and this was definitely a stressful situation. Once she found her phone and plugged her headset into it she let the sound of the rock band flood her conscious mind. It was much easier to ignore the people around her now that she had a good distraction, _if I can't hear them they are not there._ She thought to herself.

Loosing herself in the sound of the music was bliss. She laid back on the blanket and closed her eyes letting the sweet sound carry her mind elsewhere. Only a few minutes into her blissful state she felt someone tap her on the nose. Her eyes snapped open and she abruptly sat up instinctively swinging at whoever had startled her.

The feeling of someone's hand wrapped around her fist forced her to focus on the source. "Whoa there! Relax it's just me!" Wally said quickly. He had managed to catch her fist mere inches from his face to his relief. "You ok?"

"Huh?" She looked at him before jerking her fist out of his grip and pulling the earbuds out of her ears. "Yeah I'm fine, just a little uncomfortable is all." He looked at her for a moment, remaining silent as if waiting for an explanation. She groaned and looked around the crowded beach, "I don't do well around a lot of people, remember?" She said gesturing around them.

Wally's eyebrows shot up, "Oh, right. Sorry, I kind of forgot about that. We don't usually come to this spot."

"Well, where do y'all usually go then?" A bit of frustration in her voice now at the news of this not being the usual spot.

"Um, it's a private area." He started nervously hoping that would be explanation enough.

Of course it wasn't as Aaliyah's expression fell flat, "Explain."

He scratched the back of his neck as he shifted next to her, "Well, it's kind of a place that only select people are able to get to. It's a little further from here and no one but us knows where it is." He pointed to Megan, Robin and the other guy that had yet to introduce himself.

"Oh that reminds me, total squirrel moment, but who is that other guy? He never introduced himself which is kind of rude." She point with her thumb to said boy.

"Hmm, oh that is um…that's-" he was cut off when Robin ran up to the two sitting on the blanket.

"Hey we are getting ready to leave." He looked over his shoulder, "Probably best before Superb-um before he beats someone to a pulp." He coughed and pointed to the tallest of the boys.

Aaliyah leaned to the side to look around Robin and smirked, "Well you might want to hurry it up before he makes that guy eat the volley ball." Robin spun around and blanched. He sprinted over to the taller boy and yanked the ball from him while Megan grabbed his upper arm and tried to lead him away from the idiot he was about to pummel.

Her giggle caught Wally's attention as he stared at her in disbelief, "Something funny over there?"

"Yeah," she nodded her head in the direction of the other three, "that."

"So you find violence amusing." He smirked at her as he crossed his arms.

"Well, that depends on what caused said violence. In this case the idiot, being the guy that was about to be force fed a volley ball, was on the receiving end then yes I think it's funny. Problem?" Her face held a stern look but her eyes were giving away her need to smile, or laugh, which ever one would suffice.

Wally smiled shaking his head, "The situation would be a definite in determining whether or not it was amusing."

"You two ready to go?" they both looked up to see Megan still holding onto the taller boys arm. He looked ready to smash the first thing that he could get his hands on so they stood and starting packing their things.

They walked back to the diner, Megan and the now less angry boy walking in front and Aaliyah walking between Robin and Wally.

"So same time next week?" Robin asked with a grin placing an arm around Aaliyah's shoulders.

"Who said anything about me hanging out with you next week?" She questioned rolling her shoulders so his arm would fall from its place.

"Oh come on, I'll be there again. Don't want to miss out on a chance to hang out with me do you?" This time Wally threw his arm over Aaliyah's shoulders giving a quick wink.

She huffed as she looked at him out of the corner of her eye, "Personal bubble being invaded, I am about to swing on you again." Her tone was not threatening which actually made it threatening.

Wally looked at her with wide eyes, "You wouldn't."

Her look said it all but his arm didn't move quickly enough, she grabbed his hand twisting out from under his arm and stepping back. His arm was now locked in a painful hold as she smirked, "Bubble, never invade the bubble."

"Ow!" Wally was now slightly bent at the hip as to get some relief from the surprised hold. "Ok, ok."

She released his arm and smiled at him taking a step closer. "Sorry." She rubbed his arm in a soothing manner and then smacked it.

"Ow! Now what was that for?!" He rubbed his arm taking a step back, "Out of the bubble, see." He pointed around them.

Robin chuckled behind Aaliyah, "Wow I can't believe she actually pulled that move on you."

"Sometimes I get lucky." Aaliyah shrugged her shoulders. About that time her mother drove up in the truck and yelled out of the window for her. The smile never left her face as she started walking calmly towards the truck. She glanced back to Wally who was still holding his arm, a faint pout on his face, "I'll see y'all next week."

"Really?!" Megan chirped excitedly.

Aaliyah nodded, "Yeah, why not. You guys seem cool." She shrugged again as she placed her bag into the back seat.

"You ready to go?" Her mother asked as she smiled at her.

Aaliyah nodded then stopped quickly, "Oh!" She rummaged through her bag and found a pen and piece of paper. She turned quickly and walked to Wally who was watching her with curiosity, "What? How am I going to know the plans unless you have my number?"

Wally grinned, "Awe come on you don't have to make up an excuse just to give me your number beautiful."

Aaliyah punched him lightly in his arm, "Again with the hitting? Hitting on someone doesn't mean you literally 'hit on' them you know?"

"Get over yourself lover boy." She turned quickly smirking at Robin and walked back to the truck jumping in the passenger seat. Her head held down in hopes of them not noticing her blush. Megan waved and smiled excitedly as the truck drove by and Aaliyah returned the gesture.

… **.**

The bed felt amazing compared to the beach blanket she had been sitting on the majority of the afternoon. Placing her arms behind her head she let out a long sigh as a smile formed on her face. She thought about the events of the day and found herself anxious for the next opportunity to hang out with her new friends. _Friends? Yes, friends._ Her eyes began closing letting the sweet feeling of sleep overtake her tired body.

A light tapping on her bedroom window filled the room and she sat up with a groggy groan. The window was across the room which meant that she had to leave her comfortable bed to see what was causing it. Aaliyah swung her legs off the bed and rose slowly, a load yawn escaping her as she walked to the window where the consistent tapping continued.

She pulled back the curtain and nearly screamed, there on the window sill was a crow. It looked back at her with its beady eyes and whipped its head rapidly looking at her. Aaliyah studied the bird as it seemed to do the same thing to her. Leaning in closer gave her a better look at it but not well enough. She reached over and turned on the light then turned back to the crow.

With widened eyes she noticed how this crow was considerably larger than normal and its beak was a deep dark red. _You are a strange looking one that's for sure. I have never seen one like you._ She thought as she narrowed her eyes. Her nose was nearly touching the glass when the bird suddenly pecked hard on the glass causing her to gasp and stumble backwards.

Landing hard on her butt jarred her sleepy mind into full function as she groaned. The bird started to squawk, but it sounded more like it was _laughing_ at her. Aaliyah jumped up off of the floor and smacked the glass successfully scaring the bird off. She looked up into the dark night sky as the bird disappeared into the darkness.

A long sigh followed as she looked down, her breath hitched in her throat when she spotted a dark silhouette standing in the yard. Standing frozen to the spot she watched with a racing heart as the figure remained motionless. She blinked quickly but just as quickly, the figure vanished. She jerked the curtains closed and ran to her bed diving into it and yanking the blankets over her head. Just as she did as a small child, she remained as such for the remainder of the night.

 **Please R &R. Next chapter should be up soon! :)**


	5. Chapter 5

**Another chapter up! Starting to lose my drive to write this fanfic though. The views have definitely gone up so that is a plus so hows about those reviews do the same? I know, I know...I said in the beginning that I knew that reviews would be on the low side with this particular category of fanfics but who doesn't like to know how their story is doing? Anyways, the story will be jumping into some drama here soon and some events that will change the OC quite a bit. Stick around if you want to find out what happens.**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Young Justice.**

 _ **Chapter Five**_

 _ **First day of school…**_

Over the course of the month of July, Aaliyah had found herself in the company of Wally, Robin and Megan. The other boy never seemed to want to hang out with them but that didn't stop them. Aaliyah, much to her surprise, found herself actually shopping with Megan. The older girl was starting to grow on her, like an older sister and Aaliyah was beginning to enjoy her company.

Wally would still annoy her with his antics but she found most of them quite funny. Both he and Robin always seemed to want to try and outdo the other which fed her need for entertainment. The teens would meet at the diner often, or when Aaliyah would get a random phone call from Wally or Megan.

There was an incident at the power plant when it was attacked and Aaliyah got her first glance at the young superheroes that she had heard so much about. She couldn't hide the fact that she was beside herself with excitement but for the sake of not wanting bodily harm she remained at a distance.

The sound of the bell snapped her out of her thoughts as she then had to run to her first class to avoid being late. "Great first day and I'm already screwing it up." She huffed when she barely made the late bell.

Most of the students at the school seemed nice enough, a lot wanting to know about where she was from and more about herself. These were questions that she didn't really feel like answering so she stuck with short answers and played as if she wasn't interested in the topic of her life. The clock on the wall seemed to slow down each time she looked at it, it was her lifeline to getting out of here and it was messing with her.

Lunch time didn't seem to get there quick enough as Aaliyah pulled out her lunch box and sat down at a table in the corner of the large cafeteria. She pulled her phone out as well and hid it under the table as she sent a much needed text.

 _Hey Aaron – Aaliyah_

It was a few minutes before she received a response.

 _Hey Ali. How's life? – Aaron_

 _Peachy! – Aaliyah_

 _Ha! What's up? – Aaron_

 _At lunch and missing you guys – Aaliyah_

 _Oh so we are only good for lunch buddies huh?_ _\- Aaron_

 _No! – Aaliyah_

 _Ha-ha. I know what you mean. It's empty here without you. – Aaron_

 _I miss you guys– Aaliyah_

 _We miss you too Ali – Aaron_

 _I miss you – Aaliyah_

 _I miss you too Ali – Aaron_

Aaliyah looked at the time and let out a low sigh.

 _Sorry I have to cut this short but I'm running out of time. I still need to eat my lunch. Talk to you later? – Aaliyah_

 _Of course – Aaron_

She smiled at her phone as she put it back in her bag and began eating her forgotten lunch. The rest of the day dragged on and by the end Aaliyah was dragging herself to the exit. As much as she wanted to sprint far, far away from the building she just couldn't muster up the strength to do so. _I either need to make friends here or risk getting into serious trouble. Boredom is a troublemaker._

A familiar shadow passed in front of her as she walked out of the school. It circled around her several times before seeming to vanish. She looked up quickly but the bird was definitely gone.

"Hey Aaliyah!" It was Megan and that other boy. Aaliyah waved at the two, trying for a small smile. She really was happy to see some familiar faces after all the bombardment during her first day. They were high school students so them being here caught the attention of the other middle school students soon enough.

"Hi." She could feel the curious gazes on her form as the two older teens approached her. A few students stopped and smiled at the older boy and waved sending him a quick 'hi' which he ignored.

"Want to meet us at the diner today?" The question was asked before the two had even gotten close to her.

Aaliyah thought about it for a moment then shrugged, "Sure. I don't have anything else to do, first day doesn't always end with loads of homework."

Megan smiled at the younger girl and clapped her hands together, "Great! Conner and I will get the others together."

"We will?" _oh so the boy, Conner, does know how to speak and he does have a name_. Aaliyah snickered at his tone and flat expression. His features softened when Megan smiled at him but didn't say more.

"See you there, Aaliyah!" the older girl called out as she grabbed Conner's arm and pulled him in another direction.

Aaliyah couldn't help but smile at the two, they were cute together. Megan was bubbly and Conner seemed more reserved, total opposites but they do say opposites attract, right? Kind of made her think of why she enjoyed hanging out with Wally, he was more energetic compared to her more quiet and laid back ways.

The bench near the road was empty so she decided to sit there until her mother arrived to pick her up. Listening to music once again to drown out any unwanted noise sounded like the perfect way to pass the time. The song was a little dark but she found it strangely comforting in a sense, sometimes she weirded herself out.

About a minute into the song and her focus was slowly fading into the melody. A feeling of weight on her shoulder made her jump slightly, whoever it was is about to get knocked out. She looked to her right and saw no hand but _feet_ , bird feet to be exact. _What the heck?_ She looked up and gasped dropping her phone, it ripped the earbuds out of her ear as it smashed to the ground.

Beady eyes stared into her green ones, a crimson red beak was now about an inch from her nose as the dark bird loomed over her. It seemed to study her for a moment before looking forward, she wasn't sure why but she followed its line of sight. Nothing was there so she turned her attention back to the larger than normal crow that now sat perched on her shoulder.

"Have you been following me?" As if she really expected an answer from a bird, she huffed and looked down at her now broken phone and groaned.

" _I have…"_ a slightly raspy feminine voice echoed.

Her head whipped to the bird with wide eyes, "U-um, did you say something? Please tell me I am imagining things."

The bird looked at her once more, its beady eyes darting around. She let out a sigh of relief, _I must be losing it, seriously. A bird stalking me? Ha! Yeah I am a serious nutcase._

"Look at me, broke my phone and talking to a freaky bird." She threw her left arm up in exasperation then hit her forehead.

" _You'll get a headache doing that ya know…"_

Her hand slid down her face slowly, peeking through her fingers at the bird that still sat perched on her shoulder staring at her. It ruffled its feathers a bit and turned its attention back to the area in front of them. Once again Aaliyah found her line of sight following the birds.

"Ok, that's twice, _twice!_ " Her temper started to flare, she felt like at total lunatic sitting on a bench with a big freaking black bird on her shoulder that she just so happened to think was now talking to her. "How are you doing that? Your beak doesn't move so I'm guessing your voice is in my head?" She hit her forehead with the palm of her hand. _Wow, am I really doing this right now?!_

" _Calm down child, you seem to be a little distracted…and yes, because of a certain connection, I can communicate with you this way. However, you cannot do the same."_

"Ha! Distracted doesn't exactly cover the fact that I am sitting here talking to a bird. More like one step closer to a tight white jacket and padded room." She knitted her eyebrows together, "Wow, I cannot believe I am doing this. And you being in my head seems like a total invasion of privacy, which I am not too fond of." Her voice now a whisper as to not draw any attention if she hadn't already.

" _I cannot delve into a mind and invade private thoughts, this is simply how I communicate."_

Aaliyah crossed her arms looking off into the distance at nothing, she was trying to take all this in. As strange as it all was, she had to admit it was kind of cool in a completely crazy way.

The crow looked back to her, bowing its head slightly, " _It would seem I have troubled you."_

Aaliyah's eyes narrowed, "Troubled? That doesn't even begin to cover it feather head." She shifted her gaze around to make sure no one else was around to see the little display.

" _You don't seem all that troubled as you have not asked me to let you alone."_

With a low growl, "That is a good question, why haven't I turned you into roadkill?"

" _That would require the desire, you do not possess that desire child. You are curious, no?"_

She balled her fists tight at the words, "Curious? Of course I am curious, what exactly is going on here? Even if I am going nuts, I still have enough sense left to know that this is not normal."

" _That will be answered in due time, I am merely here to test you."_

"Test me? For what?" The urge to yell was killing her and she held her tongue, biting it until it bled.

The crow shifted its beady eyes forward again and nodded slightly. Without warning it flew off of her shoulder and towards a tree a good distance away disappearing from view.

She narrowed her eyes in the direction the bird had flown, "Well it's official, I am losing it." The sound of a horn tore her attention from the tree, her mother stopped the truck in front of her waving. Aaliyah grabbed her broken phone and her bag getting up and walking to the truck.

"So how was your first day?" Her mother's voice was cautious but bright.

Aaliyah looked out the window at the school and then looked at the bench she had been sitting at. A small frown forming, "Interesting is an insignificant word to be used to describe my day."

 _ **A few hours later…**_

Aaliyah stood outside the diner that she had come to love, she still didn't do well with the large amount of people that would usually be in it but having a few friends waiting for her inside made it easier. She opened the door and found it about half full, to her delight of course, with her friends sitting at a table towards the back.

They seemed to be in deep conversation about something that ended abruptly once Conner spotted her and jabbed Robin in the side. All of them turned to look at her and waved, gesturing for her to come sit down.

Taking a quick look over her shoulder she slowly made her way towards the table. Thoughts of what had happened earlier had plagued her mind to the point she was unable to focus. The words the freaky bird had spoken were true, she was beyond curious and a bit troubled.

She approached the table and Wally pointed to the open seat next to him, "Saved you a seat next to your favorite person." He smiled.

"Yeah, me." An arm wrapped around her shoulders once she was seated. Looking over to the owner of the arm she saw a smiling Robin.

She sent him a brief smile before turning and leaning forward on the table.

"What?! You punch me when I supposedly invade your 'bubble' but not him?!" Wally pointed to Robin who held a triumphant and smug look on his face.

"It's because I am her favorite." Robin teased Wally as he pulled Aaliyah closer.

"Dude! You are so not her favorite." Wally pouted which made Robin laugh.

Without warning Aaliyah stood up from the table causing Robin's arm to drop. "I need to get some fresh air. I'll be back in a minute." Her tone was flat as was her expression, this seemed to worry the others as they watched her walk out of the diner.

"What do you think is wrong with her?" Megan asked placing her fingers to her lips. The worried look she held was pushing her to follow the girl but before she had the chance Wally stood up.

"I'll go find out." He walked passed the table and towards the door. He found her sitting on the bench looking off into nothing. Clearing his throat caught her attention and she looked to him with a blank expression. "Mind if I sit?" He pointed to the space beside her.

She shrugged her shoulders and looked away from him. Usually Wally was all about throwing out a joke and teasing her but right now something was off. He sat down with his hands in his pockets and leaned back so his head was resting on the brick wall.

"So," he cleared his throat again, "what's up?"

She let out a long sigh and leaned forward placing her elbows on her knees, "Just…nothing, it's nothing."

"Seems like something to me." He turned his head as it still rested on the wall and looked at the girl sitting next to him.

She looked up at him, green eyes meeting green eyes, taking a deep breath. "I think I'm losing my mind."

Wally looked at her, both eyebrows raised, "Uh oh. Where is your music?" He sat forward quickly which made her jump.

"My music?" She let out a huff of irritation, "I dropped my phone earlier today and broke it."

"How long ago was that?" He asked in a rush.

She looked at him with a stern but curious look, "A few hours. Why? What does this have to do with anything?"

He let out a long sigh and stood up extending his hand, "Good there is still time to save you then."

"Huh?" now she was totally lost.

"No time!" He said in mock horror as he grabbed her hand, "I can see it is already taking affect."

He pulled her up and started walking away from the diner. Aaliyah glanced back and then turned to focus on him. "Where are we going and what about the others?" She pointed back with her thumb at the diner as the distance grew.

"We are going to save you from the nuthouse." He turned and smiled at her.

She raised an eyebrow, "O-kay?" She said slowly lowering her head.

He pulled her into a nearby electronics store and headed straight for the back. They walked the isle for a moment before he finally stopped in front of a display of iPods. It was then that Aaliyah realized what was going on and she laughed, "Seriously?"

"What?" He turned to her and shrugged. The movement caused Aaliyah to stiffen, now noticing that he had yet to let go of her hand. Heat rose to her cheeks as she tugged her hand a bit trying to get it loose from his. Her faced burned hotter when his hand tightened around hers instead of doing what she was hoping it would.

Wally kept to looking at the selection of iPods on display and tried not to make direct eye contact. He had instinctively tightened his hand when he felt the slight tug not knowing exactly why he did it.

"Um, Wally?" Her voice was small and not like her usually strong one. She stepped forward placing her free hand on her chin as she looked at the display, "What am I supposed to be doing here?" Ignoring the feel of his hand was harder than she thought. Focusing her attention on what was in front of her was a good start though.

He looked down at her as she looked to be studying the devices, "Well we are here to help with your addiction." He smiled.

Her eyes stopped moving over the various devices and focused on the slightly taller boy, "My addiction?"

"Yep. I don't usually help feed an addiction but I don't want our next encounter to be _me_ visiting _you_ in the nuthouse." He tried to sound serious but the smile that was threatening to show was making it hard.

"Uh huh, and who says I would let you visit?" She felt him loosen his grip on her hand and took the opportunity to pull it free and cross her arms. She had a kind of mental sigh at the relief of now having her hand free.

His smile widened, "Awe come on. I think the better question is why you wouldn't?"

She laughed as she shook her head at him and turned to look at the devices again. "Well, this will just have to wait anyways. I can't pay for them right now."

"It's cool I got this." He shrugged with a slightly smug look on his face. Before she had the chance to argue he had grabbed one and started heading to the counter faster than she could blink. She hadn't even made it to the counter in time to stop him from paying for it before he was heading towards the exit.

He walked out of the store with the bag in hand and shot a quick smile and wave to her over his shoulder. Aaliyah stopped in front of the counter where the clerk stood with a smile. She looked at the woman who looked to be in her mid-30s or so. "Please tell me he didn't really buy that and he walked out with an empty bag."

The older woman chuckled, "I'm afraid he did indeed buy it."

Aaliyah found herself hitting her forehead with her palm again, _at this rate I just might give myself a headache doing this._

The older woman chuckled again, "You two make a cute couple."

Aaliyah's faced paled and then turned a new shade of scarlet as she looked at the clerk. Immediately she started waving her hands in front of her, "Oh, no, no, no. He isn't my boyfriend. He is just a friend that, uh, just so happens to be a boy. Not in any way like _that_." She took in a long breath of air at the sudden loss as she had rambled it all out in one breath.

The older woman laughed at Aaliyah's embarrassment, "Ok, ok." She looked at the younger girl with a gleam in her eyes, "He seems sweet and genuine. Friend or not, I see more." With that she turned and walked to the back of the store humming to herself.

Aaliyah stared at the woman as she disappeared behind some tall shelves and then looked towards the door. "He _is_ just a friend." The need for convincing was there and telling herself out loud did the trick. That was until she stepped outside and saw him casually leaning on the wall to the left of the door, hands in his pockets. She could feel the blush coming on once again but quickly pushed it away.

She suddenly had the urge to punch him and after what happened in the store she intended on doing just that. He looked up to her as she walked towards him, he smile for a second before she reared back and hit him in the arm.

"Ow! What was that for?" his smile now replaced with mild shock. He gripped the arm she had hit and looked at her like she had just done the most horrible thing in the world.

"Look," she let out a weary sigh, "it's not like I don't appreciate what you did, ya know buying that and all but…" her face heated up as she thought about what she was going to say next.

"Then why did you hit me?" He pouted a bit.

A low groan escaped her lips as she gripped her head with her hands refusing to look him in the eye. "This is so embarrassing."

"What is?" He let his hand fall down as he pushed himself off of the wall and turned to face her.

She looked up at him then looked away just as quickly, "The older lady in there, thought you were my boyfriend." She murmured.

It was silent for a moment before Wally burst out laughing making her jump slightly.

"And what is so funny?" she placed her hands on her hips as she scowled at him.

"Really? That is why you are upset?" He continued to laugh but it slowly lightened up.

She puffed her cheeks out and crossed her arms, "Yes!"

Laughter slowly turned into chuckling and the amusement in this voice was thick, "What's so bad about that?"

Her face fell flat and she uncrossed her arms, "I'm done talking about this." She walked around him and headed back in the direction of the diner, Wally turned and jogged to her side. Thoughts of Aaron ran through her mind along the way but were soon replaced with thoughts of the energetic red head walking beside her. _I can't like Wally, not like that. I like Aaron but…he is so far away and our lives are on completely different paths now._

By the time the two had reached the diner Aaliyah's shoulders had slumped again and she had fell completely silent. Besides the fact that the walk back that had been relatively silent, she couldn't find it in herself to speak to the others now either.

"Hey are you ok?" Wally asked as they neared the door to the diner.

She looked up at him and then looked off in another direction, "I don't know."

"Look if it's about what happened back there-" he started but was quickly cut off.

"It's not that. I just have a lot on my mind. Sorry, and I really do appreciate you buying this for me." She smiled and pointed to the new iPod. Wally smiled and nodded.

He reached for the door opening it and waving his hand for her to go in first. They both walked to the table the others were still sitting at and took their previous seats. Conversation started again as if they had never left and Aaliyah felt herself falling into a comfortable place.

" _He seems nice enough."_

Aaliyah's eyes widened and scanned the area quickly, her gazed stopped suddenly when she spotted the familiar bird sitting on the window sill of the diner. She narrowed her eyes at the bird and turned her attention back to her friends.

" _Keep him close, never know when you might need him. Or the others."_

She looked back to the window but the bird was gone. _Whatever._

 _ **A few hours later, at home….**_

Aaliyah had just gotten out of the shower and was in the process of getting dressed for bed when there was a knock on her door. She quickly pulled her shirt over her head and rushed to the door.

"Hey sweetie." Her mom chirped.

"Hey, what's up?" Aaliyah turned to pick up the discarded towel and threw it into the hamper.

"Well I wanted to see if you were doing alright." He mom walked into the room and sat down on her bed.

"I'm fine." She looked at her mom and walked to the bed to sit next to her. "Why?"

"Well, you were really quiet on the way home. You are usually quiet but you seemed, distracted." Her mother narrowed her eyes a bit.

Aaliyah scoffed, "Distracted doesn't even cover it." She threw herself back onto the bed and groaned.

Her mother's faced turned from concern to amusement as she raised an eyebrow, "Is it a boy?"

Aaliyah whimpered as she placed both hands on her face, "Not you too."

"Me, _too?_ " Her mom leaned towards Aaliyah and pulled her hands off of her face. "Spill."

Another groan, more like growl, escaped her throat, "My friend Wally found out about my phone and decided to take me to an electronics store to buy this." She grabbed the iPod that was sitting on her bed and showed her mom.

"Well that was nice of him. Is this why you are so down?" Her mom asked as she examined the device.

"No." Aaliyah looked at her mom as her cheeks heated up, "The clerk there thought that Wally was my, boyfriend." She looked down at saying the word 'boyfriend' and tried to hide the growing embarrassment.

The sudden laughter caught her by surprise and she looked at her mom with shock.

"That is why you have been acting like this?" Her mom continued to laugh.

"Yes!" Aaliyah snapped but apologized as soon as she realized what she had done.

Her mom placed a hand on her shoulder and smiled, "Don't be embarrassed, I can understand why they thought that. It's not often you see an act of kindness like that without there being more."

"Yeah," she smiled weakly at her mom, "guess I just overreacted."

"Do you like him?" The question was a little straight forward for Aaliyah's liking. She stared at her mom with wide eyes and looked down at the iPod that rested in her hands.

Her eyes softened as she studied it, running her fingers over the sleek exterior. "I think I'm in trouble." She murmured.

She heard her mom sigh and then felt a hand on her back, "I think you like this boy but you are afraid of admitting it." With that she stood from the bed and walked out of the room.

" _I think she is right."_

Aaliyah growled as she looked at the window where the black bird was perched, staring at her with those creepy beady eyes.

"Who asked you?!" She threw a pillow at the window but it didn't seem to faze the bird.

" _No one but it doesn't take a genius to see that you have developed feelings for this boy."_

Thoughts of Aaron ran through her mind again but were once again clouded as thoughts of Wally overtook her mind, she plopped back down on to the bed again. She stared at the ceiling for a while before sitting back up. The bird was still sitting on her window sill so she walked over to the window and opened it. She gestured for the bird to come into the room but turned and walked away from the window before it had a chance to move.

"Feelings are a burden." She mumbled as she laid back on the bed. A moment later she felt a light weight on her stomach, she looked up to see the bird. It looked down at her then hopped off and stood to the left side of her head.

" _A burden huh?"_

"Yeah a burden." She said through gritted teeth. "It's not worth it."

" _You are a terrible liar child. Even I can see that you have 'feelings'."_

She looked over at the bird and with a huff rolled onto her right side, "You are getting on my nerves."

" _You are fooling no one but yourself, child."_ There was a short pause, _"I will return at a later time. I am unsure as to when but know that I will be contacting you again in the future."_

The bird flapped its wings once sending it gracefully towards the window where it disappeared into the night once again.

Aaliyah sat up and looked at the open window, she rolled her eyes as she stood up and walked towards it. Peeking out of the window once again she was frozen as she noticed the silhouette standing in the same spot once again. She regained her bearings as the figure's head moved to look up in her direction. In a quick motion she slammed the window shut and jerked the curtains closed.

Her back hit the window and she ran a hand through her hair, "We really should consider getting a dog." She mumbled and walked to her bed.

 **So there will be events in the future chapters as well as a time lapse later on eventually setting my OC into Season 2. Thoughts so far?**


	6. Chapter 6

**Well it has been a good while since I was able to post a chapter. Truth be told, technology just doesn't seem to like me lately. First I have a laptop crash and lose all my stuff, then I bust my new one. Eh. Anyways, with all my luck I was able to get another chapter up and running. I wrote this in the late hours of the night so if there are spelling errors and all that jazz I am sorry. I will review the story again in the morning and fix my stupidity. Anyways, I would also like to give a shout out to all those that have liked, reviewed and followed this story. Always good to know if what you are doing is worth something to someone. Chapter VII will be up by the end of the weekend, I promise that!**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Young Justice.**

 _ **Chapter VI**_

 _ **November 5th**_

Time had been flying by since Aaliyah moved to Happy Harbor with her mother and father. Her father's business had caught the attention of some big wigs in some larger cities, most being out of state, resulting in a large absence of her father. He had been going nonstop meeting with some of the more promising clients so time with him was very little. Her mother didn't seem to mind so much but Aaliyah could tell that she missed him most days.

"Aaliyah?" A soft knock hit the bedroom door followed by the sound of her mother. Aaliyah placed the book she had been reading down and walked over to the door and opened it. Her mother was standing in the doorway with a sweet smile on her face, "Would you like to go into town with me? Your father comes home tonight and I wanted to make something special for dinner."

Aaliyah smiled and nodded, she could see that her mother was both happy and relieved that her father would soon be home. "Sure, let me get changed."

The pair of pale blue sneakers lying in the corner made the quickest catch so they were grabbed and pulled onto her feet quickly. She ran down the stairs pulling her light jacket off the coat rack on the way by and slinging it on as she ran out the door to the waiting vehicle.

"So," the silence was broken by her mother's soft voice, "have you spoken to your little boyfriend lately?"

Aaliyah groaned and rolled her eyes, she had been hanging out with Megan more and more but the rest weren't around much. She figured that maybe they had better things to do than hang out with her, which she really wasn't so against. Ever since the incident in the electronics store, Aaliyah had been keeping a little distance between herself and Wally. Sure she text him first thing after she got her new phone but it was easier over the phone than face to face.

Every time Wally was around, Aaliyah noticed that the butterflies in her stomach she thought were reserved for Aaron, would stir up and her mind would go blank. These were not feelings that she wished to have so distance seemed to be the best remedy. The absence of Wally when she and Megan got together was also a plus in her mind.

Aaliyah scoffed, "Which one?" She slumped forward resting her elbow on the door of the truck and placing her chin in her palm. Her gaze was on the road ahead and paying on mind to the strange look she was getting from her mother.

"Still?" The one word question held more than what some would believe. The truck came to a stop at a nearby grocery store and the engine was killed with a quick turn of the key. Neither of them made a move to get out or change their previous positions as they sat silent in the truck.

Aaliyah finally looked to her mother, reading her face carefully before speaking. "I talk to Wally when he texts or calls me. Same with Aaron. I really only hang out with Megan since the others always seem to be busy or something." She shrugged. "Come to think of it I haven't heard from anyone in a few days."

The calculating look her mother was giving her made her shift uncomfortably in the seat. Her mother finally directed her gaze out the window towards the store, "Let's talk about it when we get home, okay?"

In a hurry to skip the subject for the time being, Aaliyah nodded her head and reached for the door handle. A blast of cool air hits her making her grab the thing material of the jacket and wrench it tighter around herself. _So not looking forward to this colder weather._

 _ **November 5**_ _ **th**_ _ **19:38**_

The incident in the grocery store still had Aaliyah's face beet red. Her mother had to insist on introducing her to the bag boy, who in her defense wasn't bad looking, but still. She didn't speak the entire car ride back; her frustration with her mother was just too much. The music that she finally placed on the iPod Wally bought her kept her from completely blowing a fuse.

As soon as the truck was parked and the engine was turned off, Aaliyah bolted for the door and ran up to her room slamming the door. She was so focused on getting away from her mother that she ran right passed her father and almost succeeded in knocking him down. The sound of footsteps alerted her and she immediately ran to the door and flung it open.

"Aaliyah, you are seriously overreacting." Her mother's stern voice told her that she was toeing the line and getting very close to crossing it. "It did no harm so let it go, now! On another note, you almost ran right over your father, did you even see him standing there?" Her mother snapped her arm in the direction her father was. He was standing at the top of the staircase with his arms crossed and a curious look on his face.

Aaliyah shot her mother a death glare before speaking, "How could you not see how embarrassing that was for me?" She crossed her arms and stood up as straight as she possibly could, "I don't care that I am overreacting, that was just uncalled for."

The look now on her mother's face could probably have melted steel. As she raised her finger to retort her daughter's statement she paused. Her mother placed a hand on either side of her head and rubbed her temples closing her eyes tightly. "Maybe I did embarrass you, but the way you are acting now is ridiculous Aaliyah. We will talk later, after you have calmed down and actually give me a chance to speak and apologize."

"Just forget it!" Aaliyah threw her hands in the air, "What's the point in apologizing? The damage is done."

At this point her father walked over to the two women and placed an arm around her mother's shoulders. "Aaliyah, that's enough." The deep tone he spoke with halted Aaliyah in what would have been an argument with her mother.

Aaliyah was almost certain that steam was coming out of her ears she was so mad. She opened her mouth the protest him taking up for her mother when in a small flash of light, they were gone.

"W-what?" On instinct she reached out to the empty space that was once occupied with her parents. Both just vanished before her eyes and she could feel the panic flowing through her body. She ran out of her room and checked every room in the house, seeing them disappear right in front of her just couldn't be possible. The thought after she checked the last room was that she was stupid for thinking they might be in one of them.

A shaky hand ran through her hair and pulled at her now messy braid. "Get it together Aaliyah, there has to be an explanation." She took a few slow breaths trying to calm herself and walked cautiously towards the living room. The television was still on, the local news logo showing in the background but no news reporter.

"What is going on?" She whispered. The next thought that hit her was to get her phone. Digging through her pockets soon produced her cell phone and she opened it looking for the first person she could think of.

The phone rang three times before someone finally picked up.

" _Aaliyah?!"_ the boys voice was slightly panicked.

"Aaron?" Her voice broke slightly, "Aaron, they are gone." The last part came out a tone slightly above a whisper.

" _Your parents are gone too?"_ He quickly asked as soon as Aaliyah stopped speaking.

Aaliyah nodded her head before realizing that he couldn't see her, "Y-yeah. I don't get it; they were just here and now, gone."

The line goes silent for a moment before he speaks again, _"Aaliyah? Are you still there?"_

"Yeah. I'm just trying to figure out what to do." She walked slowly towards the couch and sat down. "It must be something big, right? You said your parents were gone too."

" _Yeah. I'm not really sure; you were the first person I have spoken to. I have gotten several texts from the others claiming the same thing."_ He goes silent for a moment.

"Aaron?" Her voice is now more even toned and clear as compared to just moments ago.

" _Still here, just got another text from Marie. Same thing happened at her place."_ He let out a long breath and Aaliyah could hear what sounded like a door opening and closing on his end. _"I'm going to go check things out, I'm not suggesting the same thing for you but maybe you should try to contact someone close to you. See if you can find something out."_

"Yeah, I will. Be careful out there. Text me when you can, okay?" She stood from the couch and walked towards the front door opening it slowly. A quick peek outside and confirming it was clear, she walked towards the barn.

" _I will. The same goes for you too. Don't get into any trouble, okay?"_ His voice went stern and deep for a second but Aaliyah could hear the smile in it. He was trying to lighten up the mood a bit and it made her smile.

"Yeah. Trust me getting into trouble is the last thing on my mind right now." The barn door was giving her a little trouble but she was finally able to get it open and find the light switch. The lights flickered a minute before the dim light filled the barn. "Okay Aaron, I'll text you once I find something out. I am going to get Ace and head into town."

" _Okay. Talk to you later."_ The line went silent once more followed by the dial tone. Aaliyah looked at her phone before placing it into her pocket again. Her focus was now to get to town and find out what the heck was going on.

Ace seemed ecstatic to finally get under the saddle again and was cooperating better than Aaliyah last remembered. The excitement was evident even more so when she finally positioned herself on the saddle and kicked her heals into Ace's sides. He immediately bolted, surprising Aaliyah and causing her to lose her balance for a second.

She righted herself into the saddle once more and bent forward, "Alright big guy, let's put that energy into good use. Let's go find out what is going on."

Along the way, Aaliyah stopped by several houses and checked out the current residents. Each one was the same, the children were present but anyone over the age of 18 seemed to have vanished. Most of the houses were in close proximity of one another so she suggested the older of the children gather the younger ones and stay together. It took a little while but she was able to get it as close to organized as possible before leaving for the town.

Ace was panting from the exertion but still seemed to have a strong spark in him. He snapped his ears around at the various noises and looked around when a sound would catch his attention fully. Aaliyah did the same, concentrating and listening as best she could. It was relatively quiet with the exception of a few faint cries of small children. She followed the noise and found a little girl about three years old and a boy looking to be around seven.

The little girl was crying into her brother's shoulder when Aaliyah approached them on Ace. Ace leaned down and nudged the children with his nose. The young boy immediately wrapped his arms tightly around the little girl and proceeded to scoot away from the horse.

"He won't hurt you." Aaliyah spoke up as she slipped off of Ace and walked slowly towards the children. "Hi, my name is Aaliyah. What is yours?"

The boy looked at her with suspicious eyes before turning away from her. Aaliyah frowned at his attitude but she understood that he was scared, just as scared as her.

"Lillian." A small voice broke the silence.

Aaliyah's attention went from the boy to the small girl. She was adorable with her light brown hair in two pigtails and mint green dress. The little girl looked up to Aaliyah and tears started falling from her bright blue eyes. "Mama and papa are gone." The little girl squeaks.

Before Aaliyah could say anything the young boy spoke up, "They just vanished." He was looking down obviously holding back tears of his own.

"Mine too." Aaliyah spoke up and both children snapped their heads toward her.

"Aren't you sad?" The little girl asked.

"Of course I am." Aaliyah said in a kind voice.

"Then why don't you look it?" The boy's tone held a little more force as he asked her.

"Well, I may look calm on the outside but like you," she pointed towards the boy, "I am putting on a brave face. I am scared but I want to find my parents and I can't do that if I am too scared."

The two young children grow silent again and Aaliyah bends down to their level. At the same time, Ace walks closer and leans down, his nose resting on Aaliyah's shoulder. "Is it just the two of you?" Aaliyah asks.

Both children nod slowly, the little girl's attention falling on Ace and a small smile forms on her tear stained face. She reaches out to pet Ace on the nose and he of course happily lets her do so.

"Like horses?" Aaliyah asks the little girl. Lillian nods her head and beams up at Ace, seems like he has become that little distraction for the young girl during this time.

"Want to ride him?" Aaliyah smiles at the girl as she nods her head quickly. Aaliyah stands up and picks up the young girl, placing her gently onto the saddle.

"Lillian! What are you doing?" The boy cries out, "Mom and dad always told us not to trust strangers."

The little girl pouts and starts to tear up again as the young boy, her older brother, starts to yell at her. "But Daniel-"

"No buts!" He stomps his foot and crosses his arms over his chest. Aaliyah looks from the little girl who is now crying again and to the girl's older brother.

"Look, I can understand what you are doing Daniel but trust me when I say that I am here to help. I have no intentions to hurt you or your sister. I promise." Aaliyah looked to the young boy who looked as if he were far from backing down.

Just as he was about to protest again some older kids ran by the three yelling at one another. "Come on! They said the high school!"

"Hey!" Aaliyah called out waving her hand at the older kids. "What's going on at the high school?"

One of the kids turns around and skids to a halt, "The word is that Happy Harbor High was being turned into a refugee camp of sorts. All the kids are gathering there until they can find out what happened to all the adults."

"Until who can find out?" She questioned the younger teen.

"The only ones besides the adults that could figure this mess out, the Justice Leagues younger super heroes." A girl ranging a few years younger that Aaliyah speaks up.

Aaliyah nods her head and turns back to the two younger children again, "Looks like we have a safe haven for the time being. Come on, we need to get you two there." She walks towards the younger boy and extends her hand to him.

He looks at her hand and then to the direction the other kids went. With a huff he looks back to Aaliyah and grabs her hand. She leads him over to Ace and helps him up onto the saddle and grabs the reins. Once she is certain that they are good she turns and starts to walk in the direction of the high school.

It takes about 10 to 15 minutes to get to the high school. The three can see younger kids walking in the same direction and a few older kids standing at the doors waving the others inside. Aaliyah turns and smiles to the two riding Ace, the little girl had fallen asleep leaning against her brother.

She stopped Ace at the door and dropped the reins knowing that he wouldn't budge. Daniel started to shift a bit and Lillian began to stir from her sleep. Aaliyah reached up and grabbed Lillian holding the still sleeping girl in her arms.

"Hang on; I'll help you down in just a second." Aaliyah looked at Daniel with a look that said, stay put.

"I'll help him down." Someone spoke up. Before Aaliyah could say a thank you, Daniel was off of Ace and standing next to the person that had helped him down. Aaliyah turned and froze, of course her run of luck; it was the last person she thought she would have seen.

"Hey Aaliyah." Wally's signature smiled plastered on his face as he waves at Aaliyah. "Been a bit huh?"

"Huh? Oh, yeah." Aaliyah looks at Wally for a moment before turning and walking towards the front doors. She doesn't go in, instead she hands the sleeping girl to one of the older teens and tells Daniel to follow them.

One last glance at the two children puts her mind at ease knowing she was able to help.

"Aaliyah?" She is stopped in her tracks as Daniel's voice reaches her ears. Sparing a quick glance in Wally's direction she sees he is looking at her, she then turns to the young boy.

"Yeah?" She looks at him raising an eyebrow.

"I just wanted to say thank you." Daniel speaks, his tone is low and he is looking at the ground. He seems to be battling something within his mind but he eventually looks up at Aaliyah. "Thank you for helping me and my sister."

Aaliyah smiles and nods before turning and walking passed Wally towards Ace. Wally turns and walks in the same direction, his slightly longer legs helping him to catch up with her.

"Hey." He speaks waving a hand again. "You okay?"

"Besides the obvious?" Aaliyah looks at Wally, her tone is not harsh but she is frustrated, more so with this current situation. Getting her parents back has become her top priority. She lets out a small huff, "Sorry, not trying to push my negative attitude off onto you."

"Hey, considering the current situation, totally understandable." He gestures around them with his hands as the both of them stop next to Ace. "Looks like this is happening everywhere."

Aaliyah shoots a questioning glance at him which in turn makes him raise his hands up in defense, "O-or so I have heard. Phones obviously still work so communication with outside sources is still on the list of cans."

"Yeah, I called a friend of mine from back home. He said the same thing was happening there." Aaliyah lets her gaze drop from Wally to the ground. Suddenly she feels extremely guilty for the fight she had with her mother. The look must have said enough, she feels arms wrap around her and the next thing she knows she is in Wally's arms.

The contact wasn't sudden but it was still unexpected. Aaliyah can feel her face heating up at but doesn't move to push him away, at the current moment it is as comforting as it is nerve wrecking. Without hesitation she wraps her arms around Wally and the two just stand in silence.

"Don't worry. I'm sure that someone will figure this out soon." Wally's voice is low and serious, something that Aaliyah isn't quite use to as his is normally more excited. As a reaction to the words, she tightens her hold on him and buries her face into the crook of his neck.

"I just want them back." She whispers into his skin. Wally shivers a bit, a reaction to feeling her breath on his neck. He pulls away and moves his hands to her upper arms squeezing them in a reassuring way.

"We will get them back." Wally says with all seriousness on his face. He pulls her in for another hug before speaking again. "And once this is all over, we are going to have a little talk about you avoiding me."

Aaliyah can't hold in the small giggle at the childish sound of his voice. That was the Wally she knew, the serious one was foreign to her and comforting, but she liked this Wally better. Even if the time that they had spent together had been short, it had been enough in observation.

"So you noticed that huh?" She spoke softly.

"Hey, I know I can be dense sometimes but don't underestimate the awesomeness of my brain. Of course I noticed." He whined which made her laugh a bit harder.

"I'll think about it." She teased a bit. He pulled back and gave her a pouted lip which in turn made her laugh again. "Oh come on, pouting? Really?" She raised an eyebrow.

"Okay, fine. We will talk." Her agreement to his terms caused a large grin to spread across his face.

"I knew you'd see it my way babe." He chuckled.

"Don't call me babe." She pinched the tender spot of his upper arm granting her a high pitched yelp from him. A smile formed as it seemed her message was received, even if delivery was that of pain.

Aaliyah was turning away from Wally towards Ace when a feminine voice caught her attention.

"Hey, Wally?" It was a girl with blond hair pulled into a low ponytail. A stern look was plastered on her face as she walked, well rather stalked, towards Wally. "Time to go. The others are waiting."

"Others?" Aaliyah knits her eyebrows together and turns to face Wally. He looks at the blond girl, nods his head in a silent understanding and then turns back to Aaliyah.

"Yeah. We have, um a kind of recon team set out around the city. Some of the older kids are meeting up here soon to form some kind of alternative plan, or plans." He spats out quickly leaving Aaliyah with more questions than answers. Before she has time to respond he is running off in another direction with the other girl but not before yelling over his shoulder. "I'll call you later."

"Um, Ace? What just happened?" The horse looks at Aaliyah and shoves her lightly with his nose. He then throws his head back and paws at the ground. "Yeah my thoughts exactly. And who was that girl?"

A few minutes go by, Aaliyah still staring off in the direction she watched Wally run. A tug at her shirt caused her to jump and she looked down to see Lillian.

"Hey Lillian, what are you doing out here? You should be inside with the others." Aaliyah mildly scolded the little girl.

"I wanted you to come inside too." Her little voice was soft and Aaliyah could tell she wasn't far from sleep again.

"Ok but that means that I would have to leave Ace out here all alone." A quick gesture towards Ace had the little girl's head following and with a little smile she walked towards the horse. She reached out with her small hand and patted his nose as he had leaned down to her reach. "Lillian, go back inside with your brother. I will check on you in a bit okay?" The little girl didn't protest this time and did as she was told.

As Aaliyah watched the little girl walk sleepily back into the gym she let out a long sigh. "I hope this mess gets cleared up here soon."

 _ **November 6**_ _ **th**_ _ **several hours later….**_

She wasn't sure when it happened and didn't care, all she knew was that the adults had returned safe and sound. Most had found out about the refugee centers not long after their return and arrived quickly to retrieve their children.

Aaliyah stayed a bit long with Daniel and Lillian to make sure that their parents came to get them. The little girl broke out into tears upon seeing her mother and father and ran to them faster than her little legs could go. It was a happy and sweet reunion and Aaliyah said her goodbyes to the children and their parents.

Ace was waiting patiently for Aaliyah to return and when he caught sight of her, started to whinny happily. He pawed the ground in agitation and excitement.

"You ready to go home big guy?" Her voice was becoming ragged and tired from the lack of rest.

The time it took to get home didn't seem to take nearly as long as it did to get to town. It seemed that almost the whole ride Aaliyah was holding on for dear life as Ace raced back at top speed. He never let up, especially once the house and barn came into view. Aaliyah jumped off of him with about as much grace as a wet sack of potatoes and led him to the barn. She removed all the tack and practically threw it into the tack room before letting Ace out into the pasture.

She ran to the house with the little bit of strength she had left and burst through the front door. Her parents were standing side by side in the living room watching the news; both had their arms wrapped around the other. The sound of the front door had her mother spinning around and once upon realization threw her arms around Aaliyah's neck.

"Mom, dad! I-I am so sorry about before." Silent tears began falling as Aaliyah hugged her mother tightly. A moment later she felt her father's arms wrap around the two of them.

"Don't worry about that right now Aaliyah. We are just so glad to have you back." Her mother said with a strained voice.

Her father placed a kiss on her head and the three separated from their hug. They briefly exchanged their experiences in the split world and what had happened. It took all of about 15 minutes before Aaliyah couldn't hold it back anymore, a long yawn escaped her lips and she couldn't resist the urge to stretch like a lazy house cat with it.

Her mother chuckled, "Ok Aaliyah, go get some rest. We can talk more later."

With a quick nod of her head, Aaliyah gave her parents one final hug and made her way up the stairs. Tripping a bit on the way due to lack of energy to fully pick her feet up, she finally made it to her room.

She flopped down onto her bed and let out a satisfying sigh. "I honestly don't think this bed has ever been this comfortable." She mumbled into the comforter.

 **Sorry if this chapter was a little blah, there will be more excitement and twist coming up so just hold on to your sanity. I am kind of veering towards a KF/OC story but it's complicated. Sorry for those that are hell bent on KF/Artemis. Please R &R. Any suggestions or ideas on, well anything, are welcome. I may even consider putting them into the storyline. **


	7. Chapter 7

**Longest chapter I have written so far for this story, it contains the start to some critical components for the main plot. I was happy to get this one done because it is the key to getting the whole plot going into full swing. Things are about to get very interesting for Aaliyah followed by some shocking secrets. ;)**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Young Justice.**

 _ **Chapter VII (Part I)**_

 _ **November 7**_ _ **th**_

The loud ringing of the cell phone on the night stand had Aaliyah jolting into a sitting position. Quick movement first thing after waking up always came with its consequences. Her head began spinning and as she reached for the still ringing phone found herself losing her balance and plummeting to the hard floor.

Hardwood floors obviously don't provide much cushioning, but are definitely better suited for jarring every bone in one's body.

With a loud groan Aaliyah pulled herself up from her contorted positon on the floor and reached for the phone once more. It silenced as soon as her fingers touched its sleek exterior and she frowned, _all that for nothing. Oh well, guess I should see who was disturbing my sleep…and let them know just how much I am going to strangle them!_ She thought with narrowed eyes.

She snatched the phone off of the night stand now fully awake thanks to the fall, and opened the home screen. Her eyes widened for a split second before she hit the call button on the number that was displayed on the previous calls list.

" _Aaliyah?"_ The feminine voice sounded so distant on the other end making it hard for Aaliyah to make out what was being said.

"Megan? I-I can barely hear you. Is everything okay?" She spoke as clearly as possible.

A shifting was heard on the other line before Megan spoke again, _"Sorry had it on speaker for a moment. Everything is fine…well as fine as it can be."_ A hint of sadness was evident in her voice as she spoke.

"What is it? You normally don't call me this early." Aaliyah noted that the time on the alarm clock was reading 08:35. A long sigh escaped her as she stared at the bright red numbers on the black screen. She hadn't planned to be up this early on a Sunday but here she was lying on her cold floor speaking to Megan.

" _Yeah, uh, sorry about that. I know it's early but I wanted to ask if maybe you wanted to hang out today. I have a friend here that could really use the time out right now."_ Megan spoke in a hushed tone telling Aaliyah that this 'friend' had absolutely no idea of the soon to be plans.

With a heavy sigh and a quick run through of the thoughts that she had no plans whatsoever, Aaliyah agreed. "Okay, what do you have planned?" She was sure that if Megan hadn't been trying to keep her voice down she would surely be squealing with excitement.

" _Meet me at the usual place around 11:30. Will that be enough time for you to get ready?"_ Megan whispers into the phone.

"Yeah. See you there, bye Megan." Aaliyah responded noting that she still had to inform her mother of the recent plans.

" _Thank you Aaliyah. See you soon."_ Megan spoke quickly and ended the call just at quickly with a click.

Aaliyah sat on the floor; it now warmed from her body heat, and thought to herself. _Since when have I become the friend that people call? It used to be the other way around, me having to call the others back home and asking to hang out, but this, this is all so new. New place, new friends….new LIFE. I miss my old life, but I am somewhat thankful for this chance at a new start._

 _ **A while later….**_

Aaliyah had no issues with convincing her mother to take her into town to meet with Megan and her friend. If anything it was highly encouraged. However, it didn't stop her from being late due to wardrobe problems. She hadn't quite gotten the chance to update her clothes for this colder weather and took a little more time than she meant to.

As soon as the truck stopped, Aaliyah flung the truck door wide open and jumped out. She gave a quick goodbye and wave to her mother before sprinting across the road to the "meeting place". The diner had a generous amount of people in it at the time but Aaliyah had slowly grown to ignore the larger numbers. With the help of her friends she has gotten much better with bigger crowds of people.

A booth in the far corner of the diner was empty and Aaliyah hadn't seen Megan anywhere so she proceeded to walk towards the booth. As she sat down, a young waitress approached her with pen and pad ready. Upon seeing who it was the young waitress placed her pen and pad back into her apron and smiled.

"The usual today Aaliyah?" The young girl whose name Aaliyah had learned was Amy asked.

"Please, thank you Amy. Megan should be here soon enough and I believe she is bringing someone else along." Aaliyah replied with a smile.

"Okay. I'll be right back." Amy turned quickly and walked behind the counter towards the back of the diner.

The sound of the door opening and the distinctive 'ding' of the bell had Aaliyah turning in her seat towards the front. Megan had walked in followed by a young girl. Aaliyah noted that the younger girl wasn't much younger than she was. Her dark hair that framed her pale face really made her piercing blue eyes stand out. She was a very pretty girl and Aaliyah couldn't help but notice how she put off a sense of sadness. The two looked around the diner for a moment until Megan spotted Aaliyah and called out to her waving.

"Hey Aaliyah!" Megan chirped.

"Hi Megan. Glad to see I wasn't the only one running late." Aaliyah waved back.

"Yeah sorry. Zee wasn't so keen on going at first but I did a little convincing and now, here we are." Megan gestured towards the other girl who looked on with little amusement.

Aaliyah watched as the girl silently took the seat across from her, and Megan sitting next to her. The waitress returned a moment later with her drink and asked Megan and Zee what they wanted. The table fell silent as soon as the waitress walked away.

"Um, hi." Aaliyah spoke first seeing as the silence had become suffocating.

"Hi Aaliyah. Forgive me; I am not feeling up to much right now." The young girl spoke softly.

Megan placed her hand on the young girl's shoulder and smiled, "It's okay Zee. I invited you out so that we could help distract you a bit, even if it is only for a moment."

Zee nodded her head and looked forward placing her arms on the table top. She sat silent a bit longer before looking up and smiling at Megan then Aaliyah. "Of course."

"I know it might be a touchy subject but just so that I don't accidentally say the wrong thing today, may I ask what did happen?" Aaliyah spoke holding her hands out as she propped her elbows onto the table.

Megan looked to Zee with questioning eyes. When the young girl nodded her head, Megan turned her attention back to Aaliyah.

"You see, she kind of lost her father during that whole thing with the adults going missing." Megan spoke cautiously.

"Kind of?" This confused Aaliyah more.

"Well, yes. He is alive but he was forced to leave for other reasons. Reasons that I cannot discuss." Megan finished.

Aaliyah nodded her head slowly, still confused, but she did not want to continue to press for more information.

The rest of the day went on without a hitch and the three girls spend some much needed girl time together. Each shop within a decent walking distance was visited and various clothing and other things were looked at, or purchased. They decided to finish it off by stopping at a small coffee shop. Aaliyah found that she really liked the younger girl, Zee, as she was called. Once she opened up a bit, she fit in quite nicely with the usual routine that Megan and Aaliyah had going. Conversation wasn't nonexistent and they kept her busy enough that the thoughts of her father did not plague her mind too harshly.

"Well, this was fun. We must do this again!" Megan clasped her hands together as she beamed at the two girls sitting with her in the coffee shop.

"Agreed." Both Zee and Aaliyah spoke at the same time. They both looked to one another and smiled.

"Well, my mom will be here any second to pick me up. Thank you for inviting me out Megan." Aaliyah said as she stood from the table they had been occupying in the small shop. She gave Megan a quick hug and waved goodbye to Zee as she walked out.

 _ **18:36**_

"Aaliyah!" The sound of her father's deep voice echoed through the hall. Aaliyah jumped off of her bed and ran to her bedroom door pulling it open with unnecessary force. The sounds of her footsteps were all that she could hear as she ran down the hall and down the staircase. The living room was dark and quiet, the same with the kitchen. Aaliyah looked in the direction of her father's study and could see light peeking out from under the door. She walked slowly towards the door and listened carefully, placing her ear to the door.

In one swift motion, the door flew open and Aaliyah stumbled forward. A quick glance around the room revealed her mother now standing by her father's large oak desk and her father sitting behind it in his leather chair. He was leaning forward with his elbows resting on the desk and his chin resting atop his interlaced fingers. A small smile formed on his face as he looked at Aaliyah and studied her panicked filled face.

He chuckled, "Everything okay?"

Aaliyah growled and balled her fists, "You tell me. You yell for me loud enough that I could hear it clearly in my room with the door closed. After what happened a few days ago I thought maybe something else had happened. You scared the daylights out of me!" Her voice elevated with each sentence until she was screeching and throwing her arms around.

Her father leaned back and held up his hands, "Calm down. Nothing is wrong but something did happen. It is a good thing though. Are you going to be calm enough for me to explain?"

With a deep breath, Aaliyah nodded and stood straight relaxing her fists.

"Well you understand that business has been good and has, on a side note, caught the attention of some very promising and high paying clients." He started, giving her time to register everything. "I have been asked to make a trip to Gotham City. They are holding several meetings in one of the facilities that specialize in my particular field and would like my personal opinion on a few matters. They have also taken an interest in my latest project. I have been granted permission to bring my family."

Aaliyah's eyebrows shot straight up as she took in what he had just said. They offered to let his family travel with him to Gotham City while he was attending a meeting. This had definitely gotten her interest and her father now had her full attention.

"Okay, so when are you supposed to be going?" She asked.

"Well, the timing couldn't have been better scheduled. It will, unfortunately, be during the week leading up to Thanksgiving. You should be excused from school during that time so it will not interfere." He stated.

"Okay, so the negative is that we will be spending Thanksgiving in Gotham City? I can live with it, no big deal." Aaliyah shrugged.

"Then it is settled. We will be making arrangements for travel during that time then. That was all, Aaliyah, thank you." Her father smiled and stood from his desk. Aaliyah gave a quick nod and turned to walk out of the office.

Her mother's voiced stopped her short of the doorway, "Aaliyah, just one more thing." Aaliyah turned to face her mother as she spoke, "It is Gotham City after all and I am sure you are aware that a lot can happen there. A lot can happen in any city, so let's just be extra careful, okay?"

Aaliyah smiled and nodded once more before turning to walk back to her bedroom. Just as she walks back into her bedroom, her phone that was still lying on her bed lit up. She turned and closed the door and stepped a few feet before throwing herself onto her bed with a huff. It was a text message from, Wally. _Wonder what he wants,_ she thought to herself as she opened the message.

 _Hey beautiful – Wally_

Aaliyah rolled her eyes as she text back - _How many times do I have to tell you to not call me that? Am I going to have to inflict more pain upon you?_

 _Awe come on! I already told you I call 'em like I see 'em. – Wally_

 _So in other words I'm gonna have to put a hurtin on ya?_ _– Aaliyah joked back._

 _Maybe ;) – Wally_

Aaliyah snorted as she sent another text - _Anyways, you text me for more reasons than to plan your next appointment with my fist?"_

 _I'm just going to leave that where it is…yes, what's this avoiding me stuff you have going on? Did I do something wrong?_ _– Wally_

She couldn't help another eye roll at the first part of his text. The rest of the text had her at a loss for words. He had told her that he wanted to talk about it but she had hoped that he would have forgotten. _Guess I underestimated him,_ she thought. Her fingers lingered over the buttons, the words in her head but she didn't know the right way to put it. How does she explain to someone that the reason she was avoiding them is because of what had happened at a certain electronics store had got her thinking of her feelings? The correct response was nothing that she was willing to type out for fear of more questions but she had to give him some sort of an answer.

A moment later the phone started to ring, _I guess I took too long to answer him._ She took in a deep breath and pressed the accept button.

"Hi Wally." She spoke in an even tone. Her voice was such a liar, if he saw her face he would probably laugh. _So glad that I am not doing this in person,_ she thought as she closed her eyes focusing on taking calm breaths.

" _Hi! I figured this would be easier than trying to text."_ He said with his usual upbeat tone.

"Wonderful." She mumbled.

" _Huh?"_ Wally questioned which cause her to jump.

"Uh, nothing. Um, so what was the question again?" She laughed nervously.

" _Aaliyah, why have you been avoiding me?"_ His voice became slightly serious, something that she noted a few nights ago she didn't really like. He just didn't sound like, _Wally_ , when he spoke like that. The energetic goof-ball was who she met and hand come to like.

"I, it's just that, um, I needed some time…to think." Aaliyah slapped herself in the forehead, _jeez that answered absolutely nothing!_

" _Um, okay? What about?"_ He asked slowly.

"It…it's nothing. Just had a few things I needed to sort out. Sorry." She spoke hesitantly.

The line was silent for a minute before he finally spoke again.

" _Well, if you say so."_ He fell silent once again before his voice burst into her ears causing a small yelp to escape her. _"Hey! On the plus side, my birthday is in a couple of days!"_

"Oh? Cool." The surprise in her voice was not false; it was random and did indeed surprise her. _Random_ , yep just like someone else she knew, this made her smile. "Well, in that case I hope you have a happy birthday Wally."

" _Thanks! Hey if I find myself in town wanna hang out?"_ She could practically hear the smile in his voice. However, what he had just said struck her in a confusing way, _if I find myself in town?_

"Okay, hold on just a second there speedster, what do you mean by, _if you find yourself in town_?" She stood abruptly from her bed and paced the floor. "Do you not live in Happy Harbor?"

" _Um, well, not exactly."_ He answered after a moment.

Aaliyah could picture him standing there rubbing the back of his neck staring off into another direction like he does when he is nervous. She let out a loud huff and stopped her pacing.

"Then what is it exactly?" She asked calmly.

" _Well, it's more like not at all."_ He mumbled but Aaliyah was able to catch it. She pondered over this for a minute and took a few long breaths to calm herself. Yes, she was aggravated at now finding out that she didn't know someone as well as she had originally thought, she almost felt lied to. Another wave of calm enveloped her as she thought about how long she had actually known him. It hadn't been that long so surprises were still to be expected however, she would have never guessed that he wasn't from Happy Harbor. As much as he was around she had just assumed it and the times she didn't see him she trumped up to school and other possible activities.

"Then, where _are_ you from?" She finally asked.

" _Central City."_ He spoke evenly.

"Okay, I have no idea where that is. Is it close?" Her questions were starting to make Wally a bit nervous; she could hear a lot of shuffling around in the background.

" _Not exactly."_ His answer once again had her head hurting; at this point she wasn't even sure she wanted to know anymore.

Before she had the chance to interrogate him further, there was a tapping sound on her window. She groaned when she heard it knowing exactly what was causing it.

"Hang on a sec Wally." She moved from her spot and walked towards the window. Once the curtains were moved to the side she could clearly see the large crow that was perched on her window sill. "Seems like I have company."

" _Hmm? Company? Well, want me to let you go?"_ He said sounding a little relieved.

"Yeah, for now but this conversation is not over buddy." Aaliyah spoke as she flipped the latch on her window and opened it so the bird could fly inside. It landed on the bed and turned to look at her as she finished her conversation with Wally. She tossed the phone onto the bed and turned to face the bird.

"What do you want feather brain? I haven't seen hide nor feather of you in a few weeks." Her voice was portraying anger as she crossed her arms over her chest. The crow cocked its head to the side staring at her with its beady eyes.

" _I have been sent as a messenger to express a warning."_ The bird's voice rang in Aaliyah's head and she remembered how much she hated having conversations with it.

"Okay, get on with it." Aaliyah ushered.

" _Your family is to travel to Gotham City correct?"_

Aaliyah nodded her head and shifted her weight onto her left foot jutting her right hip out.

" _It would be wise to not wander alone child. There is danger awaiting you in that city and it's expecting your arrival."_

The bird sat stone still as it spoke of a possible threat in the city of Gotham. Aaliyah could feel a chill run down her spine at the thought that someone was waiting for her there. _Creepy._

"Do you know who it is?" She questioned.

" _Just know that it is not wise to confront them. They are unstable and possess no remorse for ill deeds."_

A heavy breath left her as she took in the cryptic information. There was a possibility that some psycho could be waiting for her to make one wrong move and who knows what might happen if she were to make it. Aaliyah nodded, "Noted."

" _As for another matter, there is someone there that wishes to meet with you. They have information that you seek should you still be curious of my origin and our connection."_

"Um, okay. Where am I supposed to meet them?" Aaliyah was starting to get a funny feeling in the pit of her stomach for reasons unknown.

" _The location is unknown to me; I was just instructed to deliver the message that if you still seek answers they would be willing to answer."_

Aaliyah narrowed her eyes, "So I am warned of a possible threat to myself and told to not wander off yet there is someone there willing to answer some questions with no known location?"

" _Yes."_

 _Ah, so that is the answer to the funny feeling in the pit of my stomach,_ Aaliyah thought as she ran a hand through her hair. "Well, this just got very complicated."

" _How so child?"_

The dumbfounded look Aaliyah gave the bird didn't seem to faze it one bit. "You seriously don't see the problem here? I can either go out looking for this person that wants to give me answers and risk running into some psycho, or choose to not go and miss probably my only chance at getting answers."

" _The decision is yours to make child."_

"Well thanks." Aaliyah deadpanned at the bird's only response before it flaps its wings and is out the window.

The bed was looking very inviting now and Aaliyah's head was pounding from all this nonsense. As if everything couldn't get more confusing it takes another huge turn for the nuthouse. After closing the window again and locking it she walked over to the bed hitting the light switch along the way. Lying down on the bed wasn't as relaxing as she had hoped; the words the bird spoke were still swirling in her mind. Her grip on herself was faltering and nervousness was setting in. The trip was still a little ways away and she still had time to find an alternative. Even still, she wanted answers but was it really worth the risk?

Her cell phone lay abandoned on the night stand once more and when her eyes landed on it thoughts of Wally started to run through her head. Previous thoughts now clouded by the face of the goofy redhead.

 _I have way too many problems, more than I am willing to deal with._ She thought and groaned as she rolled onto her side. She reached for the phone and opened up her messages.

 _Hey Wally, just wanted to say sorry about the interrogation earlier. Also, if we get the chance to hang out for a bit on your birthday that would be cool. – Aaliyah_

It was a few minutes later when her phone went off, the text message tone the only sound in the silent room.

 _Sweet! And it's all good. I could never stay mad at you beautiful! ;) – Wally_

A soft chuckle left her as she laid the phone back onto the night stand.

 _ **November 20**_ _ **th**_

Time had flown by since the idea of coming to Gotham City had been placed in her head. She didn't get to see Wally for his birthday in that time due to some strange weather anomaly caused by some flying, ice producing ships or something, but she did get to talk to him. He kept saying how much he would have liked a kiss for his birthday and that she was just the girl to do it. Needless to say her face was so red by the time she got off of the phone with him she was surprise it didn't burst into flames. He really was a bold one.

It felt good to stretch her legs after the, although brief, cramped plane ride to Gotham City. Aaliyah and her parents were now standing in the lobby of a large hotel. It was decorated very tastefully and all the employees had on crisp uniforms, wrinkles completely absent to even the trained eye.

The elevator ride up to the fourth floor was interesting as it was decorated just as beautifully as the rest of the hotel. Every inch seemed to be covered in the finest materials they could find and completely free of dust and smudges. It was so tempting to touch and Aaliyah felt like such a child thinking how much she just wanted to reach up and ruffle the slicked back hair of the guy escorting them.

The bedroom had Aaliyah's jaw going slack, it was just as beautiful as she had expected after seeing everything else. It was massive; complete with a huge bed, television, small refrigerator, and desk. The various pieces of furniture placed carefully around the room were polished to perfection, every little detail taken into account. A set of French doors led out to a balcony overlooking the city, even dark and gloomy, it was still amazing. The bathroom was equally impressive with a large Jacuzzi tub, twin sinks with marble toped counter and a walk-in shower. No expenses spared here, that was for sure.

Aaliyah walked over to another door that she figured might be some kind of small closet. When she opened it her eyes lit up, it was another bedroom.

"You will be staying in the adjoining room Aaliyah." Her father spoke from behind her. She turned around and smiled at her father and gave him a quick thumbs up before stepping into her room.

 _This place is insane! I didn't think a hotel could look like this!_ She thought as she noticed her room was much like the one her parents were in and decorated just as beautifully.

"Now I am not much of a girlie girl, but this is gorgeous." She said aloud.

" _I will never understand the human need for such luxuries."_

Aaliyah spun around to see the familiar black crow perched on the railing surrounding the balcony. She walked over to the French doors and opened them giving the bird a cold glare.

"And just what are you doing here?" She asked with frustration.

" _I have been sent once again to aid you child."_

"When have you actually helped me? Last time you just left me with more questions." Aaliyah turned and walked towards her bed after closing the doors to the balcony. "I'm not sure what your idea of providing aid to someone is exactly because the information you gave me is completely conflicting."

" _I understand."_

Aaliyah raised an eyebrow resisting the urge to strangle the bird that now sat on the small dresser. "What is it now?"

" _It would seem that I have been given a location of where to meet this person to fill your need for Intel."_

"Really? Well that is much more helpful. Where is it?" She was picking up the pillows that lay on the bed checking for various levels of fluffiness when the bird spoke again.

" _It would seem that there is an abandoned shop in downtown Gotham that holds your answers."_

"Are you nuts?!" Aaliyah shrieked as she flung a small throw pillow at the bird.

" _Was this information not helpful?"_

"It's not that the information wasn't helpful but do you have anything idea how dangerous this city is? I have heard stories and most of the worst generate from that particular location. And on top of that, there are numerous abandoned buildings located there. You want me to just go walking into each one and hope that I get it right eventually?" Aaliyah threw another small pillow at the bird. She then realized she was being a bit loud and placed her hand over her mouth. She could only hope that her parents didn't hear her little outburst.

" _There is an old magi c shop located there with a large orange sign marked with black wings. That is where your contact will be waiting, I can guide you but if the other were to interfere I will not be able to provide assistance."_

"Yeah I wasn't expecting a bird to help me fight anyone off in any particular predicament." Aaliyah placed her hands on her chin and thought about it for a moment, "Okay, well it's a start, right? I mean there can't be that many old magic shops with a sign like that outside. The only problem is figuring out how to get around my mother and then making sure that I do not run into anyone unpleasant."

She took a quick glance down at the bird, "Don't suppose you have any brilliant ideas?"

 _ **November 22**_ _ **nd**_

Aaliyah had, had no luck in developing a plan to escape her mother's all seeing eyes. No amount of excuses would grant her the permission to be separated for even five minutes. Her mother was by her side every time they ventured out of the hotel and then would only not follow her into the random bathroom stall she would choose. Needless to say, it was not going well and she was running out of time.

"Aaliyah?" Her father poked his head through the door that adjoined their rooms. "Mind if I come in?"

She sat up on the bed pulling out the earbuds and turned off her iPod. "Sure, what's up?"

"Well, the meeting today will last longer than the previous ones and roll over into a dinner for all the clients." He started as he sat down on the edge of the bed. "I was only given one extra ticket for the dinner tonight and I was planning on taking your mother. Are you okay with staying here alone for a little while?"

Aaliyah's heart skipped a beat, this was the opportunity she had been waiting for and it literally just walked through her door. "Um, yeah. I will be fine. What time do you two leave?"

"Within the next hour and a half, there are a few extra things to wrap up and then we will be heading that way. Your mother is going to accompany me to this last portion of the meeting." He spoke as he stood from the bed. "The wives of the other clients will also be in tow and it makes sense instead of having to come back here."

A quick glance at the clock sitting on the nightstand showed the time was currently 15:27. It would be close to five by the time they left and that would give her just enough time to find the nearest bus stop and travel to downtown. She only hoped to be finished well before dark and hurry back before her parents realized she was gone.

"Well, have fun." Aaliyah smiled as her father stood up and placed a kiss on the top of her head before walking out.

" _It would seem that luck has found you child."_

The bird had been hiding in the shadows created by the small couch and end table in the far corner. It jumped from its hiding spot onto the arm of the chair.

"Yeah, but I still have to make it there in one piece." She grabbed her iPod and returned to her previous spot on the bed. There was time to think now and she needed to make sure that if she did run into someone that she didn't get herself killed.

 _ **A few hours later….**_

"You sure…this is…the place?" She said between breaths. A run in with some shady characters a few blocks back ended with her sprinting in the direction the bird was guiding her to. As it flew overhead, she ran below, stumbling on debris and random garbage that lay strewn on the sidewalk. "This place is a dump."

" _Well, what were you expecting child? The building has been abandoned for an unknown amount of time."_

"I wasn't talking about the building," she huffed out another long breath of air as her breathing returned to normal. "I was referring to downtown. This place is disgusting, and yeah, the building is looking about what I thought it might."

" _Well, unless you plan on those men finding you, I suggest you go inside now."_ The bird was now perched on Aaliyah's shoulder.

"Can't argue with you there, but this might be just as bad an idea." She said as she walked towards the boarded up door. The board was loose and hanging by a single bent nail, with very little force applied, it fell to the ground with a loud thud. "I have a bad feeling in the pit of my stomach."

" _It is too late to turn back now child, proceed."_

Aaliyah ignored the bird and stepped through the bottom half of the broken glass door. It was extremely dark and smelled horrible, like stale socks and rotten milk. She choked on her own breath as she tried to breathe, the stench was suffocating. Holding a hand over her mouth and nose did little help but she was soon able to compose herself from having another coughing fit.

"Hello?" She called out. Her voice echoed in the empty building and an eerie feeling crept up her spine. Something kept telling her to turn around and run but she was frozen.

It was silent, too silent for her liking. The darkness seemed to devour everything and felt endless. She was just about to turn and walk back out the door when the sound of footsteps caught her attention.

"Well, now, what do we have here?" The voice was low and gruff. A large dark shadow emerged from the darkness followed by several others. Aaliyah's breath hitched as she counted six very large figures standing in front of her. Even if she managed to get out of the building, they were surely capable of catching her. "So pretty, isn't she boys?" The various cackles of the group filled her ears and her heart began to race. Aaliyah took a slow step back when the sound of the bird's shrill voice filled her head once again.

" _Do not run from them child. Do not fear them, he is here, I can assure you they will not touch you."_

Aaliyah looked at the bird and then back to the men. The largest one in the front took a threatening step forward cracking his knuckles. "What do we owe the pleasure girlie?" she took a slow step back.

She chanced a quick glance at the crow; it looked _bored_ , well as much as a bird could look she guessed. Her head snapped back when she heard the man take another step forward. This time she did not step back, instead she chose to study the man. He began to look a bit angry at the fact that she did not falter this time and started to lunge forward. Aaliyah closed her eyes awaiting the pain but all she felt was a slight breeze on her left cheek and then heard a thud. Several more followed before she opened her eyes and she let the breath she had been holding out.

When her eyes opened she gasped, all the men lay motionless on the dirt covered floor. "What?" Her voice was just above a whisper.

"Hello, Aaliyah. So nice to see you again." A raspy masculine voice sounded to her left and she jumped. She could see no figure, only bright piercing blue eyes.

"Wh-who are you?" Her voice was slightly shaky but not as bad as she predicted it would be considering the circumstances.

"Answers." The raspy voice stated.

 **So end of Part I. This person Aaliyah has just met will be revealed in the following chapter and it will get interesting. This is just the beginning of the mess she is about to get into. Hope you enjoyed! :) Please R &R. **


	8. Chapter 8

**Cliffhangers are evil muahahahaha! And I am no stranger to leaving one :) buuuuut here is the next chapter! You are welcome. Now I would like to thank the reviewers that have been so helpful as to point out a few things:**

 **Cats are my World - thank you for giving me the heads up on that mistake. How embarrassing that was but I am glad you caught that!**

 **Great I dea - I took what you said and changed a few things around. You are right on the money, bad stuff happening in Gotham City is almost a definite.**

 **I love the fact that I have some awesome readers that have taken the time to give me a helping hand in this. It motivates me to write better and pay more attention to the little details. I am still working on it though so don't beat me up too badly hahaha. Anyway, enjoy this next chapter!**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Young Justice.**

 _ **Chapter VIII (Part II)**_

 _ **Quick recap…**_

 _When her eyes opened she gasped, all the men lay motionless on the dirt covered floor. "What?" Her voice was just above a whisper._

" _Hello, Aaliyah. So nice to see you again." A raspy masculine voice sounded to her left and she jumped. She could see no figure, only bright piercing blue eyes._

" _Wh-who are you?" Her voice was slightly shaky but not as bad as she predicted it would be considering the circumstances._

" _Answers." The raspy voice stated._

… _ **..***…..**_

"Answers?" Aaliyah tilted her head to the left. The strange being was completely hidden in the shadows with only the bright blue color of its eyes visible. _Is that really even possible?_ She thought.

"If you are implying that to be my name then you are mistaken. Answers are what you seek, no?" The raspy voice echoed.

"Then, what is your name exactly?" She turned more to face the direction in which the eyes and voice were.

"My name is of no importance at this moment." The voice said. "However, I could be considered so."

The bird that was perched on her shoulder ruffled its wings and stared forward.

" _I am afraid this child can be a little dense master, perhaps being a bit more straight forward would help this process move along more fluidly?"_ The bird's raspy feminine voice spoke.

"Um, excuse me? I am not dense!" Aaliyah bellowed, ignoring the fact that her voice carried easily inside the abandoned building and could alert threats to her presence. "How can you call me dense with the cryptic information you fed me?"

" _The information was clear to me."_ The bird responded turning its head in the opposite direction so as not to face her.

"Why you-" She growled raising a fist but was cut off by the sound of the raspy masculine voice.

"That is enough." He spoke calmly; or rather she figured it was a _he_ from the sound of its voice _._ "Now, what questions do you have, my child?"

Aaliyah glared at the bird that still sat on her shoulder and then turned her focus ahead. "Well, first things first, how am I able to speak with this freakishly large crow." She nudged her head into the bird's side.

"Well, that would be due to your physical connection." The entity answered.

"Okay, can you explain that?" These so called answers were creating more questions.

"Would you like the simple answer, or would you like me to fine tune it to meet reality's definition?" It asked.

"Um," She thought for a moment unsure of what exactly that was supposed to mean. "If you could explain it in _some_ detail that would suffice but I want the truth."

"Very well," She could hear shuffling of what sounded like feet on the floor and noticed that the eyes were getting closer yet she still could not make out a figure. The level of the eyes did give her a slight indication of height as she had to crane her head to meet them. "You are not who you think, or rather _what_ you think. You are of this world, yet at the same time not. The shadows are naturally inviting and comforting to you while the light will hold deception and lies."

Aaliyah gawked at the answer she had been given, "And what exactly am I supposed to take from that? That didn't really explain anything."

" _I told you the child was dense."_

Aaliyah turned to yell at the bird once more but was halted by the other voice, "Silence." The bird bowed its head and continued to stare at the ground. "I can understand that I may have left some loop holes in my explanation but I assure you that it will all make sense. I am afraid that you may not be ready for the full truth at this time."

"What? How could I not be? I risked my neck coming here and this is the explanation I get?" She flung her arms over her head knocking the bird off balance sending it falling to the floor. With a flap of its wings, it was perched on her right shoulder again and staring coldly at her. Aaliyah ignored the bird's gaze and continued, "What am I supposed to be ready for here? Last time I checked I was nothing special, well, other than this weird connection with this bird. Otherwise, nothing!" Her rant ended when she looked up again into the cold blue eyes of the person she was speaking with.

The figure had stepped forward again causing her to take a large unbalanced step back. She stumbled for a moment but her eyes never left the captivating blues. As the figure stepped forward, light coming through the cracks in the boarded up windows landed on a shape. It was tall and seemed of sharp masculine features still encased in the shadows. The figure continued forward slowly until the shadows seemed to recede back and the form of a tall dark haired man stood before her. He was clad in dark clothing, a long dark trench coat hiding most of his body swayed as he moved. His pale face was handsome, framed by the dark hair that fell just passed his ears and possibly longer in the back and further more by the dark goatee. With all the dark on him it was hard to tell where one thing ended and another began. His face was solemn, calm and at the same time alive, it was a strange combination.

Aaliyah narrowed her eyes as she studied him and something seemed to click in her mind. "You, look familiar. Do I know you from somewhere?"

"Yes." He answered simply.

"Are you going to tell me?" She crossed her arms and raised a questioning eyebrow.

"Would it benefit you to know? I am afraid that you will not like the truth considering the life you have lived." He stated.

"Huh? What does my life have to do with this?" She uncrossed her arms and they fell to her side limply.

"Everything." He turned his attention towards the bird. "You have not informed her I take it?"

" _I have not."_ The bird answered. _"It was not asked of me."_

"What is there to tell me?" Aaliyah asked with a hint of desperation and frustration.

The man turned his attention back to Aaliyah and took a small step forward, his head held high as he looked down to her. "You are of me."

"Meaning?" She gestured for him to go on hoping there was more to it than just that. She also noted that this bird and this man spoke strangely and that she would have a long talk with the bird later about the issue.

" _Offspring, child."_ The bird butted in.

Aaliyah looked at the bird with narrowed, calculating eyes. The word had no specific meaning to her at that moment and she found herself staring off into nothing as she thought. _Offspring? Okay I am not stupid I know what the word means, but what does that have to do with anything? Jeez am I really as dense as the bird says?_ She rolled her eyes as she continued to think. _'you are of me'…'offspring'_ she repeated in her head over and over until it hit her. She paled, eyes widening as she figured out the connection.

"Tha-that can't be right!" She shrieked. Her eyes darted to the tall man who still stood silently in front of her. "You mean?"

The man nodded his head, "It would seem that you have figured it out."

"But my, my father, he-" She began.

"Not." The man interrupted.

"Who are you?" Aaliyah thought back to the beginning of the conversation. "And what does all this have to do with _this_?" She pointed towards the bird. "You said that I could hear this bird because of a 'physical connection', what is that?"

"The bird is simply my servant and the physical connection is myself due to you being my offspring. As for who I am," he paused, "I am afraid you will not believe me."

"Other than claiming to be my biological father? How much more could you throw at me?" Aaliyah said with a bit of anger as her whole body tensed.

His eyes narrowed the slightest bit, almost unnoticeably as he spoke. "I am a president of Hell, a demon if you will, specializing in war and magic. I assist those worthy of it in defense and provide needed information regarding ones enemies. I do not have time for those who value materialistic things."

Aaliyah gulped as she took everything in and stared at the man, the _demon_ that stood before her. In all her life she had heard tales of such things as demons and creatures that lived in the shadows. Creatures that waited for their victims to get close enough for them to snatch them from the world. All seemed like just that, tales, yet here she stood with a supposed demon who claimed to be her biological father. Not only this but also claimed to be the president of hell? _Yep, he was right. Totally hard to believe._ She thought.

She was lost in her thoughts when the voice rang through her ears again. "It would seem that I was correct to assume that this information would be troubling." Her _father_ said.

"Your name." She spoke softly as she raised her eyes to meet his.

The man looked at her with curiosity, probably the only emotion that he had shown the entire time. "I am known as Malphas."

"Malphas." She repeated in a whisper. "You were right. This really is a lot to take in and I am not really sure just how much of it I really believe." She spoke slowly.

"In this short amount of time you have been given information that would cripple most individual's minds. Yet you still stand and have the ability to respond." He stated calmly.

Aaliyah felt somewhat proud to hear that, she knew that he spoke the complete truth regarding that bit. Most people would have probably passed out, ran away screaming, or possibly even mentally shut down. Having control in a situation like this was hard but she found it and held on to it tightly.

She looked up to meet his eyes once more, "I do have more questions. It would be surprising after all of this if I didn't but…I really just need to process all of this right now."

He nodded his head in understanding, "I agree. You are wise to take this information and analyze it."

Aaliyah nodded her head and looked towards the door, it was still light out so not much time had passed. When she turned back to where the man had been standing the space was empty. She stepped forward and then shrieked when a large crow flew from the shadows and out the broken door. The space was now quiet and empty once more, until she remembered the thugs that lay on the floor. She turned towards the larger one that had lunged at her first and walked slowly towards him. _Are they dead?_ She thought as she studied the man's body.

" _They live child."_ The crow spoke.

Aaliyah looked at the bird and then back to the man on the floor. She noticed something by the collar of his shirt and reached a shaky hand out to move it aside. When she had view of the strange looking thing she narrowed her eyes, "What is this?"

" _Haven't you ever seen a feather, child?"_ The crow laughed.

"Don't laugh at me it's creepy!" Aaliyah shot out. "And yes I have, just never seen one used to do something like this."

The man began to stir a bit and Aaliyah retracted her hand quickly and jumped up. She ran out of the building before the men had a chance to recover and find her still standing there.

 _ **A few hours later….**_

Aaliyah was able to make it back to the hotel with no more problems. The information that she had received was running through her head a million miles an hour and she just couldn't wrap her mind around how any of it was supposed to make sense. Malphas said he was her father, so who was her current father, the man that she had known all her life? At the same time something was oddly familiar about Malphas, something that triggered a place in her mind pointing to recognition. It was all so strange and even more so when she figured her mother into all this. Had she any idea of it? Had she been hiding something all these years? Had this demon possibly tricked her mother at some point resulting in her carrying his offspring?

Aaliyah slapped herself in the forehead as she thought through everything.

" _I have told you before, child, you are going to give yourself a headache doing that."_

"I had a headache before it thanks to my _father_." Aaliyah hissed. She returned to looking at the program that was playing on the television set, her parents still had not returned from their meeting and she was stuck in a room alone with an annoying bird and confusing thoughts.

"Hey," She spoke suddenly, "um, if my supposed real father is a demon, does that make me half demon?"

The crow eyed her carefully, _"Are you just now figuring that out?"_

"Hey cut me some slack here will ya!" Aaliyah yelled raising her fist at the bird, "I just got a butt load of information dumped on me and I didn't think about it at the time."

" _If you say so, but to answer your question, yes."_

Aaliyah lowered her fist and calmed herself before she strangled the smart mouthed bird. The two sat in silence for a moment longer until Aaliyah turned to ask another question. She wasn't even able to get the first word of the question out of her mouth before her phone started ringing. She looked at the name and number displayed across her screen and hit the accept button.

"Hey Wally, what's up?" She tried to sound somewhat happier and less frazzled than she was.

" _Hey there beautiful, not much just sitting here thinking about all the awesome food I'm gonna eat this Thanksgiving. You?"_ Wally replied with his usual amount of excitement.

"Wally," Aaliyah dragged out his name in a warning tone. She let out a loud sigh before responding again. "Nothing on my end. Parents are in a big business meeting here in Gotham so I'm stuck in the hotel until they are done. We probably won't be celebrating Thanksgiving this year."

" _Well that's not cool. Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays!"_ Wally cheered.

"Yeah cause of all the food." Aaliyah deadpanned.

" _Awe, you know me so well babe."_ He replied without missing a beat.

"Seriously, the next time I see you it's going to hurt." Aaliyah shook her head as her lips formed a small smile.

" _It'll be worth it. Especially since you still owe me that birthday kiss."_ Wally sang out.

Aaliyah could feel her face heating up as she thought about the conversation they had on his birthday. _He really doesn't forget anything does he, especially if it involves food or flirting._

" _Oh! Hey gotta go! Talk to you later Aaliyah!"_ Wally says suddenly and almost too quickly for Aaliyah to comprehend. She didn't even get the chance to say goodbye when the dial tone reached her ears. The phone was silent and she moved it in front of her face looking at it like it was going to do something else.

"Huh," Aaliyah huffed he word, "well that was strange." She shrugged her shoulders and placed the phone next to her on the bed.

" _Many things about you are strange child; the fact that you have equally strange friends is no surprise to me."_

One of the small throw pillows went flying towards the bird knocking it off of its perch. The bird jumped back up after ruffling its feathers back into place and gave its best bird glare. Aaliyah of course ignored it and went back to watching the television program.

 _ **November 24**_ _ **th**_ _ **12:24**_

Aaliyah threw her small luggage bag onto her bed and breathed a sigh of relief. She was back in her own bedroom and glad to be there. The hotel was awesome and all but there is just nothing like being on familiar grounds. The meetings her father was to attend were cut short due to most of the material being covered by that last night when they attended dinner together. Her father's company had made some promising clients and he was already working on the paperwork before they got on the plane that morning.

The message alert tone sounded throughout her room and Aaliyah dug the phone out of her jacket pocket.

 _You're still coming right? – Megan_

Aaliyah had let it slip to Megan during a text that she would be home sooner and it was insisted that they meet up for a "pre-Thanksgiving get-together". Megan had mentioned doing this so that they could hang out before everyone scattered to be with their families. She responded with her agreement on the matter and got the approval to join them from her parents.

 _Yeah I just need to change. Literally just put my bag down. See you in a few. – Aaliyah_

 _Awesome! – Megan_

A quick rummage through her clothes drawers and closet produced a nice set of jeans, light blue sweater and black ankle high boots. She took a quick glance at herself in the mirror applying the bare minimum of make-up and running a brush through her short hair. The waves it kept naturally made the style she chose look great without even trying and she was good with that. She pulled her boots on and tucked the excess fabric of the jeans into them before running downstairs.

Her mother was already waiting by the front door, probably after hearing her daughter barreling down the hallway, with keys in hand. "You ready?" She smiled at Aaliyah.

"Yeah." Aaliyah responded with a quick nod.

… _ **.**_

The diner of course was pretty bare. Not many people eating or hanging out there, probably already with family or just staying in keeping warm from the cold. Aaliyah noticed that she did not see Megan or any of the others seated anywhere inside. Figuring that maybe they were running late she walked across the deserted diner and sat down in the usual booth that she and Megan would occupy. She pulled out her iPod and put her earbuds in blasting some music to fill the time and her mind. Thoughts of what happened in Gotham were still plaguing her and she has not been able to concentrate since. The fact that the man she had known all her life was not her biological father did come as a surprise but the biggest surprise was who claimed to be her real father.

The music drowned everything out including her focus on the surroundings. She didn't even notice that someone had taken the open seat next to her as she put all of her focus into listening to the music. The feeling of one of her earbuds being pulled from her ear startled her and she jumped. Her head jerked towards the person who had removed it and her eyes widened, "Hey beautiful." His usual smirk present as he looked at her startled expression.

She didn't respond as she relaxed, she simply reached over and pinched his side as hard as she could earning a loud yelp from him.

"Ah! What was that for?" Wally looked at her with wide eyes as he rubbed the spot she had pinched.

"I warned you about calling me that, lover boy." Aaliyah stated calmly turning to look across the table where Megan was now sitting with a playful smile on her face. Aaliyah smiled at Megan, "Hi Megan."

Megan giggle, "Hi Aaliyah, how was the trip?"

A loud groan escaped her as she placed her hands on her head and elbows on the table. Wally and Megan gave her a strange look and shared a quick glance with one another. "Peachy." She finally growled out.

"Did something happen?" Wally questioned.

"Yeah, a lot happened." Aaliyah scoffed, "And before you ask, I can't tell you what it was. I am still trying to figure that out myself." She looked at the two who were now giving her worried looks.

Before anything else could be said the girl that Aaliyah had met before she left sat down next to Megan. Zee smiled at Megan and looked at Aaliyah, her eyes widened for a split second and her body tensed. Aaliyah gave her a questioning look, "Zee? Are you okay?"

"Huh," Zee shook her head, "um, yeah I'm fine." She looked back towards the door and shifted uncomfortably.

Aaliyah gave Zee one last look and turned back towards Megan, "Conner coming?"

Megan smiled at Aaliyah and nodded, "Yeah, he should be here shortly."

The four of them fell into a brief conversation before Wally noticed Conner walking in the door followed by the blond haired girl Aaliyah had seen the night the adults disappeared. The two walked over to the booth and each grabbed a chair from a nearby table pulling it up to the outside of the booth's table.

"I know this is our usual spot but since our little group isn't so little anymore what do you say we move over to a table?" Aaliyah pointed out. "We could-"

"The tables aren't much bigger." Conner interjected.

Aaliyah cleared her throat, "Well I was going to say that we could pull two tables together so we would have enough room." She eyed Conner for a moment before turning to look at the others. "Well?"

"Sure, sounds like a great idea." Wally gave her a thumbs up. The rest agreed to move to the tables after making sure that moving the tables would be okay with the owner.

They started up conversation again with the help of Megan who always seemed to know what to say to break the silence. Everything was fine until Aaliyah observed the exchange between the girl, whose name she found out was Artemis, and Wally. Aaliyah found herself observing the two in detail and made the assumption that maybe there was something more than empty threats being thrown across the table. Much like hers and Wally's exchange when he calls her certain names, it made Aaliyah's chest tighten watching the two.

" _Jealous?"_

Aaliyah's breath hitched in her throat hearing the familiar sound of the bird's voice in her head. She didn't move her head to look at where she knew the bird would be sitting. With a long sigh she excused herself from the table and walked to the door of the diner. She did not notice the suspicious eyes set on her as she walked towards the door. Once she stepped outside she turned towards the bench that she had sat on a number of times. There on the armrest sat the large bird, looking at her with its beady eyes.

"What do you want?" Aaliyah groaned.

" _Just keeping a close eye on my master's daughter. It would seem that you are among a magician, were you aware?"_

Aaliyah jerked her head back raising an eyebrow, "Huh? A magician? No I wasn't aware but how would you know?"

" _I can sense the magic, it is strong but adolescent. No doubt if they possess the art of magic then they have sensed the difference in you by now."_

"What difference?" Aaliyah questioned sitting down next to the bird. Times like this, when the streets were practically deserted, were when Aaliyah was okay with openly speaking with the bird in a public setting.

" _The meeting with your father has opened the door in your mind that hid your other side."_

"What side?" She was a little alarmed at the thought that something could be happening to her without her even noticing.

" _Your demonic side child but do not fear there is no chance of you losing control and becoming a monster. I am sure that was going to be your next question, yes?"_

Aaliyah nodded her head letting out the breath she had been holding, "Well what do I do now? What is going to happen to me?"

" _I am unsure, your true nature could be quite powerful once you learn how to hone it, however others may find it troubling. There is the possibility of encountering rivals that will no doubt try to prevent you from ever fully transforming."_

"Great." She grumbled leaning back against the cold bench. "As if I didn't have enough to sort out right now."

" _Everyone has problems in life; you would be smart to remember that."_

It took everything that she had at the moment to not smack the bird in the head or strangle it half to death. She settled for glaring at it in silence before it decided to speak again.

" _It would seem that my time here is up, I will see you again."_ The bird abruptly flew away and left Aaliyah sitting on the bench alone staring at the concrete sidewalk deep in thought.

 _So someone in that little group in there can sense magic and uses it? If only I knew then I could maybe ask them how to go along with all this madness. How in the heck do you approach a group of people and ask "Hey does anyone by chance know magic? I could really use some help with mine."_ She thought shaking her head at the stupid thought.

The door to the diner opened and Aaliyah looked to see who had decided to step out.

"Hey, mind if I sit?" Wally asked as he put his hands in his pockets and walked towards the bench.

"Sure." Aaliyah answered then turned to stare off across the street.

"I know you said that you couldn't tell us what happened to you while you were in Gotham City, but if you ever decide to I'm available." Wally smiled; his words were sincere and had the butterflies in Aaliyah's stomach going crazy. She smiled at him and nodded her head.

"Thank you. I wish I could talk to someone about it but it's hard for me believe…and I was there." She laughed dryly. A cold breeze penetrated the thin sweater and reminded her that she didn't have her jacket on. An involuntary shiver wracked her body for a second as it fought to maintain the heat it had. An arm wrapped around her shoulders and Aaliyah looked to her left to see that Wally had moved closer and was now close enough to feel the heat from his warm body. His arm was wrapped around her shoulder and since she did not protest the contact he pulled her closer sharing his warmth.

Aaliyah could feel her face heating up and she moved her eyes away from him hoping that he didn't notice. The bitter cold wind attacked her exposed skin and the heat from the contact was helping to stave off another shiver attack. She felt Wally shift beside her but she still refused to look in his direction, especially when she felt his breath on her neck. Her eyes widened and her breathing ceased for a millisecond.

"Ya know you still owe me that kiss." Wally spoke in a hushed tone.

"So I've been told." She squeaked and mentally slapped herself for it. Wally chuckled and she chanced a glance in his direction. He had moved his head away from her and was now looking straight ahead. Aaliyah gulped as she took the opportunity to plant a quick kiss on his right cheek. Wally's eyes shot wide open, the kiss had surprised him for sure but he was a little disappointed.

He turned to her and pouted a bit, "Well, um that wasn't exactly what I was hoping for."

Aaliyah knew her face was as red as it could possibly get and she stuck with looking at the sidewalk which suddenly became very interesting to her. "Sorry." She chuckled nervously. Without warning a hand was placed gently on her chin and started to turn her head. Before she knew it she was staring into those emerald eyes. Her breath hitched again, her mind running on the thought of how it was possible with all this lack of oxygen in such a short time span. The pout now replaced with his signature smirk and a small gleam in his eyes as he stared back into her equally green eyes. She didn't move her head or say anything as he began closing the short distance between them. Her heart was pounding in her chest and she was almost certain if it could it would have burst out.

She sucked in breath as his lips brushed lightly over hers, a soft feathery touch made her want more. On instinct she closed her eyes and tilted her head moving forward to apply a little more pressure.

"Hey!" A voice called out. "You two going to come back in sometime soon?"

Wally and Aaliyah jerked apart and looked in the direction of the voice with surprise written all over their flushed faces. It was Artemis standing in the doorway of the diner with her hands on her hips and a slight scowl on her face. Wally turned to look back at Aaliyah then back to the impatient blond standing a few feet away from them.

"Yeah sure, be there in a sec." He answered and it earned him a scoff from the girl as she turned and walked back into the diner.

Aaliyah looked around Wally as she watched the girl go back inside with an attitude. "Is she going to b-" her words were muffled by Wally as he claimed her lips softly, a hand cupped her face carefully as he moved his lips over hers slowly. With a bit of hesitation she kissed back, not really knowing what to do. Her head was spinning as she lost herself in the kiss, both from euphoria and the surprise that it happened so fast yet so carefully. This was her first kiss; her first kiss that happened to be with the loud mouth, energetic redhead that she had met only a few months back in the place that had become her favorite hangout with her new friends.

He pulled away slowly and Aaliyah opened her eyes, she looked at him in a daze and smiled. "I was right." He said.

Aaliyah looked at him with confusion written all over her face, "About what?" She placed a hand over the one that still rested on her face.

"That you were the perfect girl to give me my birthday kiss." He smiled. Aaliyah rolled her eyes but smiled at his cheesy choice of words. "However, now we have a problem."

She raised an eyebrow, "And what is that?"

"Well, it was great for a birthday kiss but," he paused and Aaliyah stared at him with narrowing eyes.

"But?" She questioned.

"Having to wait for a kiss like that till my next birthday would be torture." He smirked playfully wriggling his eyebrows.

Aaliyah shook her head as she leaned away from him and he dropped his hand from her face. "You can be really corny sometimes ya know?" She laughed.

A wide grin broke out on his face as they stood from the bench and walked towards the door, "Yeah but you wouldn't have me any other way babe."

Aaliyah held up her pointer finger and stated, "Ya know there is nothing official here so I can still inflict pain."

Wally's eyes widened, "You wouldn't."

She gave him a sadistic grin and walked back inside the diner to join the others for their pre-Thanksgiving dinner.

…

It was now around 19:47 and Aaliyah had finally made it to her comfy bed. The radio that sat on her desk turned to her favorite station with one good song after another playing. She let out a long sigh and covered her eyes with her right arm as she lay back onto the fluffy pillows. Her mind was on overload but now for more positive reasons. She couldn't stop thinking about the kiss, it had been on her mind ever since it happened and had pushed all of her previous thoughts to the back of her mind. If she thought that she was in trouble after Wally had bought her the iPod then she must be in deep trouble now. He had asked to see her again and see if maybe she would accept being in a relationship but she wanted to think on it. There was so much going on in her life that she didn't want it to get in the way of a possible relationship with him. It was becoming frustrating and she was conflicted.

A loud pecking on her bedroom window startled her and she sat up. It tapped again with more force and urgency. She tilted her head to the side at the bird's strange behavior, it would tap once or twice but it almost sounded panicked. She jumped up and walked over to the window opening the curtain and undoing the latch. The bird flew in quickly and landed on her bed.

" _Close the window quickly child!"_ The bird yelled in her head. Aaliyah hesitated for a moment but turned and closed the window. The bird lifted its head to look at Aaliyah, _"It seems that our problems didn't end in Gotham City."_

"What do you mean?" Aaliyah sat on the bed next to the bird.

" _It would seem that the one that was waiting for you, the one you were warned of has followed."_

Aaliyah's heart started to race, she knew what the bird was talking about but it never actually told her what or rather who to expect. "Wait! Did they follow you here?!" She pointed to the floor meaning the house.

" _I believe that I was able to lose them."_

"You believe? Great." Aaliyah stood up from her bed and walked over to her night stand grabbing her cell phone.

" _What are you doing?"_

"Calling the police." She started to dial the numbers.

" _And tell them what? That a bird that your demon father commands has come to warn you that a dangerous and potentially life-threatening person is looking for you?"_

She paused, the bird was right, and what was she supposed to tell them exactly? They would surely put her in the nuthouse if she explained it like that. A loud groan left her throat and she looked at the bird.

"What do you suggest then? Wait here until this person figures out where I am and end up putting my family in danger too?" Her tone slowly turned angrier as she flung her arms over her head.

The room grew quiet as she waited for the bird to speak which it didn't seem like it was going to any time soon. As she was about to say something else her phone came to life and she nearly dropped it. She took a few deep breaths and hit accept.

"Hi Wally." She breathed.

" _Hey, um, you okay?"_ He asked slowly.

"I'll tell you in the morning." She mumbled and glared at the bird that still sat on her bed.

" _Huh?"_ He obviously didn't hear or didn't understand.

"I-" the window burst open and Aaliyah gasped.

" _It's him!"_ The bird squawked.

"I thought you said you lost 'em!" Aaliyah yelled forgetting that Wally was still on the phone.

" _Aaliyah? Aaliyah what's going on?!"_ His voice grew louder.

Aaliyah was silence when a slim figure slipped into her bedroom stepping soundlessly down from the open window. With the head held down she could not see any facial features that might identify this person. A low cackled bellowed from the figure as it slowly raised its head and Aaliyah screamed. She could not see the face due to it being covered with what looked to be a piece of a burlap sack, the slanted eye holes and slit for a mouth gave it a dark and dangerous appearance.

Turning its head slowly to face her it spoke with a male's voice, "There you are." The voice was low and penetrated her very core. She couldn't speak, not even as Wally's voice rang through her ears, all she could do was stand frozen to the spot. _Well, my life is about to suck!_

 **AHHHHH! Not another cliffhanger! Sorry folks but I guess I am just an evil one but I promise I do it with a smile :) Please R &R. Let me know what you are thinking besides the bodily harm for leaving you with another cliffhanger. **


	9. Chapter 9

**So I am not sure if my last chapter just sucked that much or if there is something wrong with the site. I received the reviews but there was no change in the views of the chapter. Strange. Anyways, here is the next chapter of my story. There is a little violence but nothing too harsh and the end of the chapter gets a little sad :( Also some time jumps in here so if there is any confusion please let me know and I will make sure to clear that up for ya. Hope that for those that take the time to read this enjoy!**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Young Justice.**

 _ **Chapter IX**_

 _ **Date and time unknown…..**_

Waking up to a dark, damp and searingly hot place was never a good way to start the day, or night. Well…whichever it was exactly. The last thing Aaliyah remembered was the creature or man, which had climbed through her bedroom window. He had such a cold and dark demeanor and moved too quickly for Aaliyah to react. She felt pain in her left side, it had happened so fast that she barely had time to register it. It didn't last long before she felt a warm wet sensation on her left side and then, nothing. The darkness was all consuming and malevolent in all ways it was thought to possibly be. It never ended and seemed to swallow anything and everything that was, or could have been there. However, as frightening as it would have been for most, Aaliyah found great relief in it. She felt as if a pair of warm arms had been wrapped around her body protecting her. It was a strange feeling but she didn't want it to end, it was so comforting and gentle.

"She doesn't seem to be having the reaction you had hoped for." A low cackle rang through Aaliyah's ears and her eyes slowly opened. It was still fairly dark but somewhere in the space she could hear voices. They echoed around her and sent chills down her spine as she tried to focus.

"It is unfortunate. I gave her the highest dose of it I have. Perhaps it is time to try my newest creation?" Another low voice said with distaste.

"Or you could just let me have her. I have been dying to play with her since you brought her here." The other voice was slightly higher and a dark humor spilled from it as it continued. "I am sure that I can get a better reaction." Another loud cackle rang through the air before it was cut short by the other voice.

"No." It said darkly.

Aaliyah was fully awake but still could see very little as she listened to the exchange. She could picture the other one pouting at this point after being told they couldn't "play" with her. A shiver ran down her spine again as she thought about what could be going through the head of that one in particular.

"Hmm. What is your interest in the girl exactly? I have been wondering that too." The other voice finally asked after a long pause.

There was no answer, only a low growl, probably from the one that had asked the question and received no answer. As the two voices silenced, Aaliyah sat up slowly but had to quickly muffle a scream that threatened to escape her. Her left side was throbbing and a shooting pain ran throughout her entire body. The movement had reminded her of the pain she felt before she had slipped into the darkness; a place that she desperately wished would consume her once again. One hand was held over her mouth while the other was placed carefully over the area where the pain generated. She could feel that her shirt was wet and cold but could also feel warmth, probably from newly oozing blood. That was the only thing that she could think of that would have made her shirt wet considering that the floor under her was dry.

The sound of shuffling caught her attention and she looked around before her eyes made out a silhouette. On instinct she started to push herself backwards away from the figure when her back eventually came into contact with a wall. The cold stone was the only thing keeping her from creating more distance between herself and whoever was now making their way towards her.

"Ah, I see you are awake." The low voice flowed through the air like poison and Aaliyah immediately recognized it.

"You-" Her voice broke as she tried to speak, her throat extremely dry and protesting the sound that was trying to escape. She cleared her throat a bit and continued, "You are the one that broke into my bedroom." She stated, her voice low.

The only answer she received was a low chuckle. Aaliyah narrowed her eyes and tried her best to see the person that now stood about three feet from her. A hand reached forward and brushed against her cheek, Aaliyah jerked her head back hitting her head on the cold stone wall. For a quick moment her mind raced to the fact that the wall was cool to the touch as well as the floor, whereas upon awakening she had felt extreme heat. She thought back to the sensation and thought about her injured side. Perhaps that was the cause of it. Another sensation on her forehead had her pulled from her thoughts and she jerked her head to the side this time avoiding another collision with the wall.

"It would seem that I was right about you. You are not like the others I have experimented on. Your results are inconclusive. I will return with my latest creation." The man walked away just as quickly as he had appeared. Aaliyah curled her knees to her chest ignoring the burning sensation on her side from the movement.

"So…they have been experimenting on me?" She whispered to herself as she wrapped her arms around her knees. She winced when the pain worsened but she continued to hold the position. "I know I am different but…." Her voiced cracked this time from the emotion that was boiling up inside her. It was at that time that she realized that she was not chained to anything and a small spark of hope hit her. If she could just find a way out then she could figure out where she was, hopefully. A small smile broke out across her face and she stood from her place ignoring the pain and tried to make out all the figures in the room. She felt along the wall for a door but to her surprise she found nothing, no door, no window and no means to escape. All hope immediately leaving her as she slumped to the floor again.

"Where am I?" She asked as she looked around again. Her heart sank as she thought about everyone back home. _What would they be doing? Would they be looking for me? Mom, dad, my friends…_ her eyes began to water as she thought about them. Then her mind thought of a certain person, _Wally._

It was at that moment a small sliver of light landed in the room illuminating it slightly. She looked up and her eyes widened when she noticed that she wasn't in a room, not really. It was more like a small basement covered in stone with bars covering the top of the room. An area of the bars looked different and that is when she noticed a small lowering device that blocked off the area the bars did not cover. _So that was how they were getting in and out of here._ She thought.

No sooner than she had noticed the device did it start to lower. It moved silently which is why she figured she hadn't noticed anything to begin with. The figure that was on it made her face pale and her body tense, with the help of the light she was able to make out who it was with ease. There was no mistaking it; the sinister grin, trademark green hair and purple suite, demented cackle that followed as the device came to a halt at her level.

"Joker." Aaliyah said with a stern tone. She did not want to show just how frightened she was at the time but didn't believe the outcome of this situation was going to be altered by false bravery.

A wide, face splitting grin formed on his face as he walked closer. Aaliyah looked up as he got closer to maintain eye contact as best she could. At this point and time she knew fool well that no amount of bravery, real or not, was going to help her. She faltered in her stance as he drew closer and he took that chance to swing his leg making contact with her left side. A bloodcurdling scream rang out as Aaliyah slumped to the ground holding her side. The pain was excruciating and she could feel a large amount of what she expected to be blood oozing from the area.

A loud cackle rang throughout the room, "Just figured that while the cats out I would get my kicks in…" he paused and bent down to grab Aaliyah roughly by the throat pulling her up from the ground. She let out a painful yelp as the movement jarred her injured side once again. "Pun intended." He smiled wide with narrowed eyes. "Now, try not to get blood on my suit. This one is my favorite." He laughed manically as he threw Aaliyah back and she collided with the cold stone wall.

Her breathing was heavy and labored as the pain wracked her body rendering it immobile. The Joker, of course noticing this immediately took advantage of the situation. It felt like an eternity before the beating stopped, unfortunately the pain was more severe than before and Aaliyah was almost positive she was covered in blood. She lay in a heap on the floor trying to will the pain away but of course that was useless as another sharp wave of pain ran through her. Every breath hurt and she was more than positive she has a broken rib, or ribs.

Once the Joker was finally gone Aaliyah sat up as best she could from her position on the floor, having to lean slightly on her right side to alleviate some of the pain. "Stupid." She whispered. The small sliver of light disappeared and once again she was surrounded by darkness.

" _It would have happened regardless. He approached you with all intentions of inflicting as much pain as possible."_

Aaliyah's eyes widened and she started looking around quickly. The sound of something moving, something small caught her attention and she strained her ears on the sound. Light pressure was felt on her right leg and she jumped slightly resulting in a hiss of pain.

"How did you get in here?" Aaliyah asked as she focused on her breathing.

" _The shadows can do more for you than merely provide comfort child."_ The bird spoke.

This would normally be a situation in which Aaliyah would raise an eyebrow and start arguing with the infuriating creature, however right now she was just happy to have the company.

" _You are injured."_ The bird stated simply.

"Figured that out all on your own huh?" Aaliyah tried to joke. The bird did not respond and Aaliyah took the chance to speak again. "So, can you show me how to get out of here before they kill me?" She gripped her side tighter as the flow of blood seemed to increase.

" _I can…but that would require something of you."_ The bird said slowly.

"Okay, what is it?" She asked as she bit through another fit of pain.

"Your life." A raspy masculine voice answered from beside her. The shock of the answer and the familiar voice cause another more severe fit of pain to hit her. A loud hiss slipped through her teeth as she leaned forward and gripped her side firmly.

"You can't be serious." She said through clenched teeth.

" _You are not far from it now child, if your injuries go untreated you will perish sooner than you think."_ The bird spoke up. _"If you somehow managed to live through this you would meet your end eventually. I am sure these that hold you do not plan on letting you keep your life once they are finished with you."_

Aaliyah narrowed her eyes and turned to see the bright blues she remembered from before, "So nice of you to come to your daughter's rescue." She spat sarcastically.

"I would not refer to this as a rescue since my offer entails your death." He spoke emotionlessly. "To rescue would mean you would leave with your life."

Aaliyah growled, "Yeah, thanks for clearing that up for me."

" _What is your decision child?"_

The decision was obvious to Aaliyah, she wanted to live but either way she was probably going to die and she knew that. "What about my family? My friends? My life?"

"Do any of them know about you?" He asked.

"No." Aaliyah answered looking in his direction again.

"Then it will remain that way if you choose to take my offer." He stated simply.

"So I'm not allowed to see them before my death?" Her eyes narrowed and her temper began to flare.

There was silence before the bird finally spoke up again, _"There is another option."_

With everything that has happened so far Aaliyah was a little hesitant to ask. She looked to where she figured the bird was on her leg, "What is it?"

"If you choose to deny my offer then I can offer to heal you instead. I am not one to heal but I know of someone. You will have to learn your abilities on your own for now, however once you make progress you are to seek me out. That you will have no option for." He said evenly not missing a single beat and the idea of it struck Aaliyah as more reasonable. Although she would probably have to endure her current situation longer than she had hoped, she would at least get to keep her life, for now.

"If that is another option then why wasn't it offered first instead of my life?" She asked.

"Death would be simpler; focus would become clearer as your body would not be fighting with your current injured state. If you choose to live then learning would take more time as your body would have to." He answered. "In conclusion it is a way to refresh the body and mind."

"Seems like a harsh method." She retorted. "Why can't you just take me with you anyways?"

"You are of no use to me in this state; it would not be a wise choice on my behalf." He answered. "Your presence is only acceptable if I am able to train you."

"You're a great parental figure." She hissed.

" _What is your decision?"_ The bird asked.

"I will take the second offer. Heal me and I will work on my abilities and find you once I can." She answered without hesitation.

"Very well." He spoke. A few minutes of silence passed when a purple mist appeared, piercing the dark and flowing over Aaliyah's body. The intense waves of pain began to subside and soon there was nothing. She moved slowly just in case another attack of pain erupted but there was nothing. Aaliyah smiled and let out a breath of relief, the pain was gone.

"Just know," He started and Aaliyah turned to look into those cold blue eyes, "this decision is final and cannot be undone. Once you are ready, no matter the time spent honing your abilities, you will be in my possession for one year."

Her eyes widened, "A year?!" She whispered harshly.

"Yes." He answered calmly. "This is not an option, one year, that is final. My servant will assist you this time before you are to return to me." The blue eyes disappeared with the final statement and Aaliyah was left with the bird and her thoughts.

With a low groan she spoke, "So what do I need to do to get this process going?"

" _Meditate."_ The bird stated, _"It is necessary to focus. Without focus you will fail to reach your true self. You must delve deep within yourself to find what is locked away and focus on releasing it."_

As much as she wanted to protest that meditating was going to be a waste of time she didn't, Aaliyah settled for doing as she was told for once and focusing.

…

The bird had been Aaliyah's eyes on the outside while she had been locked away. She had soon learned that after several months of tirelessly searching she was presumed dead. A funeral apparently had been held for her, an engraved tome stone lay atop an empty grave. It was no surprise to her that it had come to that but it was frustrating, she was very much alive.

It had been close to nine months after the "funeral", according to the bird and Aaliyah was making minimal progress finding this hidden energy within her. She had figured out how to heal herself, this frustrated her captors to no end but it had its benefits. The amount of abuse her body had become accustomed to was beyond what she had originally thought possible. Every day the Joker would pay a "little visit" and leave her with multiple bruises, lacerations, possible broken bones and do it all with a smile. It was sickening and he was definitely on the top of her revenge list once she got out.

Once he left she would focus her energy to the areas of pain and within minutes the wounds and internal injuries were no more. This would anger him once he returned to find her perfectly fine and no evidence of the prior abuse. It was a small victory for her but she took what she could get.

… **.**

"Dang it." She growled as she lost focus once again. "Every time I think I am getting somewhere I lose it." She slammed her fists on the hard ground. "Can't you give me some hints or something?"

The bird sat silently on the ground next to her. It made no change in its position and no indication that it was going to speak. Aaliyah reached out and smacked the bird in the head and snickered when it ruffled its feathers in frustration.

" _How many times must I repeat myself?"_ The bird asked in frustration. _"The shadows are more than just concealment. They serve many purposes; all you must do is will them to your needs."_

"Easier said than done." She mumbled but resumes her previous position. She focuses on the darkness around her letting it consume her.

" _Once you have hold of the darkness, will it. It only needs to know your desire."_ The bird's voice became distant as the darkness continued to consume everything around her.

For the first time in what felt like forever she finally felt as if she had a grip on the shadows and could feel them twisting and bending to her will. It was strange and the feeling was frightening at first but soon it settled and she was able to think more clearly. A strange feeling overtook her body and she felt a sensation that she could not describe.

" _I can sense that you have gained control, now what do you wish of it?"_ She could hear the bird's voice deep within her mind. She pondered on the question for a moment and with a single sentence she spoke.

"I wish to…" She thought for a second longer before finishing, "I wish to be home." The feeling of weightlessness hit her unexpectedly and she let out a small yelp. She felt like she was floating away into the deepest pit of the darkness and before she knew it she was on solid ground again. The smell of dirt and a hint of leather caught her attention and she chanced a look around. It was still very dark but a small shimmer of light could be seen peeking from under what looked to be a door.

Her first thought was, _sweet a door!_ then her thoughts went to, _but, the room, or rather hole I was in had no doors or windows. So what is this, is it a trick?_ She slowly reached out and felt the dry wood of the door and put a little pressure on it. The door creaked open and her eyes immediately widened.

"What? Is this real?" She asked in astonishment.

" _It is and it would seem that you have finally connected with your true self. Perhaps not fully but you are much closer."_ The bird landed on one of the stall doors.

"But, just a minute ago I was still in that room and now I'm here." Aaliyah pointed around her at the barn that she now stood in. From the look of the light that was now filling the barn from the open door it was early afternoon. Aaliyah smiled brightly as she heard a loud snort from behind her. She turned around to see Ace standing at the pasture entrance towards the back of the barn. He began stomping his hooves in excitement and throwing his head back.

" _My master will retrieve you this evening."_ The bird interrupted.

"So, I have a little time at least." Aaliyah said with a huff. She walked to the front entrance of the barn after petting Ace and saw that no vehicles sat in the driveway. "No one is home."

" _Probably for the best."_

"How is that? I can't tell my family, that mind you has actually mourned my 'death', that I am still alive?" She argued.

" _It would be fine to inform them that you live, however how will you explain that your father will be taking you away for a year?"_

Aaliyah halted in her steps and looked at the house with a hint of sadness. Even if the bird was completely right she didn't want to admit it out loud. The time she had left was limited and she desperately wanted to see her family before going away. With a loud groan she continued walking towards the house to then find the door locked. She searches the hiding place the spare key was usually kept and with a breath of relief found it. The door unlocked with ease and she walked in quietly closing and locking the door behind her. Not much had changed and that she was grateful for. Most of the furniture sat in the same place as before with the addition of a few new pieces.

The walk up the stairs had her heart racing and she wasn't exactly sure why. She got to her bedroom door and with a deep breath opened it slowly. A quick glance around the room showed that nothing had been changed. All of her belongings lay around the room collecting dust. Which brought up her next question, just what day, or month was it? She walked over to her desk and powered up the computer. It was running slow, probably from the lack of use so she opted to get cleaned up and change her clothes.

Nothing in her closet had been touched either and that she was even more grateful for. She grabbed some clothes as quickly as possible and made a mad dash for the bathroom. If anything, she didn't want to be there longer than she needed to be. She walked into the bathroom freezing when she caught a glimpse of herself in the mirror.

"What the?!" She screeched. She had figured that she would look pretty rough after being kept in that room for so long with minimal help with hygiene. They were nice enough to give her a tooth brush and tooth paste so her teeth didn't rot out of her head but as far as that, not much else. Of course, she expected her hair to be much longer but this change was completely shocking. "How did Ace even know that it was me?"

" _He could sense it."_

Aaliyah simply nodded as her focus was now fully on the face that stared back at her in the mirror. She ran a hand through her long hair, time was a factor but the strange part was the color. Her original dark auburn hair was now a deep dark violet. She was thin from lack of nutrition but seemed to have filled out more than she last remembered. A deep blush covered her cheeks as she looked at her body, "How long was I gone?" The question came out into a whisper. She lost track of time after a while so she had no idea just how long it had truly been.

Once she was able to compose herself she cleaned herself up and exchanged her ratty clothing for the cleaner set. She walked out of the bathroom in a daze and slowly made her way back to the computer. It had finally turned completely on and she was able to check out her current situation with a clearer understanding. The first thing she pulled up was of course the calendar year and month. Her mouth dropped and she nearly dropped with it upon realization.

"I have been gone for nearly two years?!" Her voice rose with every word and she spun around to face the bird that sat in the usual place on her unused bed. "Why didn't you tell me it has been that long?"

" _You didn't ask."_

"Seriously?" Aaliyah growl through gritted teeth, "Knowing this would have helped with a few things ya know? I'm still confused on the hair color but the rest makes sense now." She seethed.

The bird remained silent.

"You are such a pain." Aaliyah turned back to the computer and read that it was currently March 2012. "I'm 15." She said with slightly widened eyes. "Was taken at 13 and I return home 15." The disbelief was thick as she continued, "This is just messed up."

The sound of the front door opening and closing followed by voices startled her out of her thoughts. She spun around and stared at her bedroom door. Every muscle in her body wanted to react and run while at the same time she wanted to stay. The bird decided that for her when it flew to the computer and hit the power button with its beak.

" _We must leave."_

"Uh, um, right." She nodded slowly. After making sure the evidence of her presence was gone she walked into the closet and shut the door behind her. The darkness wrapped around her and she willed it to take her away. To her surprise she stepped from an alleyway that led to the streets of the small town of Happy Harbor. "How did I end up here? I didn't give any specifics."

" _It must have been your subconscious mind."_

The streets were pretty lively so the bird made itself scarce flying off in another direction while Aaliyah walked out of the alley onto the crowded sidewalk. She received several strange looks and a few smiles. Some took the time to say hello or even waving a friendly hand. Aaliyah could feel her long hair hitting her lower back as the wind whipped it around. Another thing she found strange, the length, it was far too long for such a short period of time. Well it felt like a short period of time in sorts so maybe it wasn't.

For some reason she found herself standing in front of the diner that she had come to love in the months that she had been there. She smiled and sat down on the bench that still sat in front of the building, her long hair cascading over her left shoulder. The deep violet was so weird to her and probably explained the strange looks she was getting from some of the people on the street. She ran her thin fingers through her long locks not missing just how soft it felt.

"Hey, um, mind if I sit?" A voice hit her ears and shocked her out of her distracted state.

She turned to answer the person who had asked so nicely when she froze. Her eyes widened slightly and her breath hitched, there stood one of the people she never thought she would get to see again. Due to her voice's betrayal she just nodded her head.

He smiled wide as he sat in the empty space beside her, "Hi, the names Wally."

 _Okay, well he obviously doesn't recognize me,_ she thought with a tinge of hurt. The combination of her body changes and her hair did make her look slightly different but it wasn't like a complete transformation. She still believed she looked a little like her old self but no one has seen her for just over two years.

Aaliyah smiled at him and nodded once more, "Hi, Wally." She hadn't noticed it until that moment but even her voice had changed, the thick accent was mellowed down sounding more light and airy.

"Aren't you going to tell me yours?" He asked.

Aaliyah giggle, _seriously it's just like the first time I met him._

"What's so funny?" He asked looking a bit confused.

"Huh, oh, nothing. You just remind me of someone." She said with a smile now on her face.

"Really?" He grinned, "He must be pretty awesome then."

"The best." Aaliyah studied his features closely. He had changed a lot since she last saw him but the one thing that remained the same were his eyes. The emerald green was even brighter than she remembered, or maybe she was just paying more attention. His freckles were still there but they were beginning to lighten up. His smile was still his smile and her heart began to flutter as she continued to look at him.

"So, what brings such a beautiful girl to this part of town?" He sat forward leaning with his elbows on his knees his hands hanging limply.

"I'm not sure really. I was just walking and ended up here." She pointed towards the diner with her thumb. "What about you?"

"Friends. We meet here sometimes." His tone turning soft as he answered her.

"Oh." Aaliyah looked around and thought about getting up and walking away before he had the chance to ask or say anything else. Her fear of him finding out it was her or her blurting it out was eating away at her mind.

"Hey, want to hang with us?" He asked suddenly.

"Um, are you sure? I really don't want to get in the way." She held up both hands waving them in a dismissive manner.

He opened his mouth to say something else when a female voice interrupted him. "Hey Wally."

Aaliyah looked over his shoulder to see Megan standing with the few other people she thought she would never get to see again. Timing was either good or just plain mean at this point as the group stood there looking at both her and Wally.

"Who's your friend?" Megan asked curiously. She looked at Aaliyah with careful eyes and then back to Wally. Megan then smiled and waved her hands in front of her, "Never mind. Let's get inside then we can exchange introductions." She waved the two in as the small group walked in the front door.

Wally turned back to Aaliyah and smiled, "Well, looks like you are coming after all."

"But, I can't pay; I have no money on me." She tried for another excuse but was met with another counter.

"Don't worry, I'll cover it." He smiled brightly grabbing her hand and pulling her up and walking into the diner behind the others. "Ya know you kind of remind me of someone I knew too, always so stubborn." He breathed.

Aaliyah tried to resist but he was much stronger than her and pulled her along with ease. The group was seated at the tables just like she remembered the last time and had pulled two together to make room. For as busy as the streets were at the time the diner was empty. The only ones there were her and the others. She noticed it was the usual group with Megan, Conner, Artemis, Rob and Zee. All of them had changed slightly in appearance but she could tell who was who easily, so why was it so hard for them to recognize her? As familiar this situation felt, it was extremely uncomfortable. She noticed that Zee was looking at her very carefully and her eyes kept flickering towards the door. Aaliyah turned to look in the direction she noticed the girl's eyes going but saw nothing.

"Have a seat." Megan chirped.

"Here you can sit next to me." Wally spoke as he pointed to the empty chair next to him.

Artemis was the next person to speak up, "That chair is usually reserved for someone else."

Wally averted his eyes to the empty chair and his smile faded a bit before he spoke again, "It's fine. You can sit there." He smiled.

Aaliyah sat down slowly and noticed that once again Zee was watching her. She narrowed her eyes at the girl, never once did she recall having felt anything negative against her but this was getting frustrating. She hated it when people stared and she had gotten enough of that on the walk to the diner. "Problem?" She questioned accusingly.

"No." Zee answered, "You just remind me of someone that's all."

"Yeah? You're the second person to say that to me." Aaliyah said looking at Wally out of the corner of her eye.

" _The little magician suspects."_

Aaliyah's eyes darted towards the window but did not see the bird. She then looked across the table at Zee in time to see her eyes narrowing at her.

" _My apologies child, I must keep out of sight. The one you suspect is indeed the one I speak of. She is the very same magician that you came into contact with two years ago."_

"Say, we never got your name." Artemis broke through over the bird's explanation.

"Yes, what is your name?" Zee asked next with a stern look now on her face.

Aaliyah narrowed her eyes at Zee; she could feel the rest of the group's eyes on her but her focus was on the girl sitting across from her. "I never said it and don't plan to." She spoke with unnecessary harshness.

" _Calm yourself child, your emotions could flare up your abilities. It is something that you do not need to happen."_ There was silence for a moment, _"It would seem that he has come to retrieve you earlier than planned. I would take this opportunity to leave."_

Her eyes darted towards the front door and immediately settled on the man standing just outside. He looked just as she remembered, the dark clothing, dark hair and piercing blue eyes. Zee followed her line of sight and spotted the same man. Her head spun back to look at Aaliyah whose attention was still turned away.

"I knew it!" She said in a harsh whisper glaring at Aaliyah. "Why are you hanging around that _thing_?"

Aaliyah slowly turned her head to Zee with an emotionless face, "He is my father." Zee's eyes widened.

"What happened to you?" Zee asked, her voice turning to that of concern.

"More than you need to know." Aaliyah said looking down at her hands as she picked at her nails.

"What? Wait what is going on?" Megan spoke up finally looking between the two other girls.

Aaliyah turned her attention away from Zee and looked at Megan. She smiles at the older girl, "I have to go. I'm sorry." She rose from the seat and turned to walk away.

The rest of the table remained silent as the man walked into the diner and approached Aaliyah. He did not speak; simply nodding his head he turned and walked back towards the entrance and out the door.

Zee stood up from her seat, "You're really going to leave with him? Father or not I can tell you there are better options for you."

"I made a deal I have no choice." Aaliyah looked at the girl with sad eyes and turned to follow her _father._

She heard a huff before she heard Zee's voice again, this time completely halting her in place. "Aaliyah! This is stupid."

Aaliyah could feel the confusion radiating from the others as she stood there with her back to them. Her head hung low refusing to turn and face the questions she knew they would have.

"Aaliyah?" His voice made her heart wrench in her chest. She could hear the hurt and the confusion in his voice.

Turning slowly and with the smallest smile she could form she looked at the table of people she had called friends. Each one held their own version of confusion. It was not the way she was hoping to let them know that she wasn't dead but it was done and there was no taking it back now.

"I'm sorry Zee but if you are what I think you are then you should understand. I have to go there is no way that I can change that. Without his help I would have died the first night they had me." She spoke softly wrapping her arms around herself now completely thankful that the diner was deserted. "It was either I take his deal to end my life or let him heal me and find him after I had figured a few things out."

"How long?" Zee asked walking towards Aaliyah placing a hand on her shoulder.

"A year." Aaliyah answered in a whisper looking at the ground.

"Is there no way to convince you to let me help you?" Zee asked quietly.

"No." Aaliyah shook her head slowly.

Zee said nothing more as her hand fell from Aaliyah's shoulder. The two girls stood in their place for a moment before Aaliyah walked around the girl quickly and ran for the door. She ran as fast as she could to the nearest alley and ducked into it as fast as her feet would allow. The tears that she had been holding back were threatening to escape and she breathed deeply to compose herself. She leaned up and rested her head against the brick wall of the building that was supporting her. Her eyes closed as she focused on steadying her breathing.

The sudden feeling of arms around her jolted her senses and her eyes shot open. All she saw was a flash of orange and she was being held tightly against someone. She did nothing but stand in place as she felt the person's grip loosen and they leaned back. Her eyes meeting the emerald ones she had missed so much. Before she could react in any way his lips had crashed against hers and her head began spinning. She realized after the haze cleared that something as simple as a kiss could hold so much emotion and she kissed back with as much as she could. His lips felt soft but the kiss was anything but, it was urgent and demanding in a sweet way. She could feel her knees growing weak and she began losing her control. His arms wrapped around her quickly and pulled her back up supporting her weight between his body and the wall he had her pressed against.

They finally separated after a while breathing heavily. Wally leaned his forehead against hers and closed his eyes, "I really missed you." He said breathlessly.

"I missed you too." Aaliyah said gripping the front of his shirt tightly. She breathed in deep and opened her eyes, "Wally, I have to go." She could sense the presence of Malphas not far off and knew that he was waiting of her.

"Why?" He asked softly. This hurt side of Wally was hitting her hard and she couldn't stand to see it.

"I just do. It's time for me to return to the shadows for a while." She answered laying her head on his chest. "The shadows are where I belong apparently."

"The shadows hide a lot you know." He said as he rested his chin on her head.

"Sometimes the shadows expose more than the light is capable of." Her answer was true in her mind, especially with everything that has happened to her.

"…Maybe, but it can illuminate a new world to those who live in the shadows, " He started as he pulled her closer, "those like you."

Aaliyah smiled as she rested her head on his chest, "You can be really corny sometimes you know that?"

"Only for you babe." He said as he chuckled lightly.

She pulled away from him placing a soft kiss on his lips which he returned with a little more force. As they parted once again she smiled at him, "Until next time." The tall figure stepped out of the darkest part of the alley and stopped next to Aaliyah. Before Wally could answer, both Aaliyah and the man stepped back into the shadows and disappeared.

"I'll be waiting." He said as he put his hands into his pockets staring at the place Aaliyah had been standing.

 **I received a message from one of my viewers/reviewers Great i dea suggesting that I should name the bird that follows Aaliyah. I figured it would be fun to ask the readers to come up with some names and I will take any and all ideas for the bird's name into account. And as always please R &R!**


	10. Chapter 10

**So I know that I am not supposed to post author's notes without actual chapter content but I felt that it would not be fair to those that have followed and even put their input towards this fanfic. I am ending Secrets are for the Silent…for now. I am going to be writing up a sequel to this because I have to be honest I cannot leave it like this and there are some loose ends that need tying up. Please ask questions, make suggestions, or just plain tell me how you feel. The next story is in the beginning stages and a lot can be altered. Plus I love hearing story ideas from readers, really gets my brain working. Which reminds me, for those helping with the naming of the bird that followed Aaliyah around, the name chosen will be in the sequel as well.**

 **As another note, just on the side, I am rewriting the chapters to add more detail and fix anything that may not make sense with events occurring within the existing chapters.**

 **And so for those interested here is but a _tiny_ taste…**

It was dark, the air hot and moist sticking to her skin as she clawed at her scalp in frustration. _How could this happen, how could I have not seen this? It was right in front of me and so painfully obvious it makes me sick to think about it._ With each heavy breath, she clung desperately to the rough bark of the tree, her palm now raw from the sheer pressure of her body weight alone. "I will rip every feather from you when I find you!" She growled through gritted teeth. Looking around was useless in this dark. It was dizzying and the heat merely added her growing frustration.

 _"_ _It was your ignorance child that led you down a path blindly."_

Fluttering of large wings just above where she currently stood could be heard, the scratching of claws on the bark of the tree as the large bird landed before silence once again reigned. "It may have been my ignorance to the obvious but you were the one openly letting me walk on so blindly. Why tell me now? Why after over a year am I finding out who they are and asked to carry out such a task? You know my feelings well enough, how the hell could he ask me to do this?!" Aaliyah practically yelled at the top of her lungs as they burned with needed air. Heaving a deep breath a low guttural growl rumbled in her throat, "And I have to face _him_ again to top it all off? Why not just throw me into the lowest pits to burn for eternity?"

 _"_ _I cannot lift you."_

"I really hate you."


End file.
